UMS "Agram" : Building a Gaming Board – pt 1. < Articles < Hobby

Building a Gaming Board – pt 1.

Marko Paunović, 27th September 2020

In the past issues I've been dealing with various forms of terrain for my Malifaux games and I've even done a modular gaming board for all the wild west themed terrain. These past few months I was busy participating in the Iron Painter so I welcomed the one issue break I've had with my Malifaux terrain builds. That said, I missed it. A lot. But participating in such a cool event like Iron Painter, where you are surrounded by great artists and are pushed to your limits, makes you improve your abbilities and more often than not provides you with plenty of ideas for future projects. This year was no different. So, even while competing, I've been drumming up ideas what to do next and I must admit up until the last round of Iron Painter I was unsure of what to do. But then the „Snowpocalypse“ theme was announced and I started doing a diorama out of a bust and there it hit me. Wouldn't it be really cool to have a whole gaming board that was done like that 8x8cm base? So, in this and the next issue I'll give it a go!

Careful readers will already know my mantra about any and all big projects I undertake. When starting a project of such magnitude, always plan ahead. Try to think of all the things you want featured in your project. From that, you'll be able to get the tools and materials you need. And once you finish that list, you'll have the outline of the activities you need to perform and what order they should come in. So, the idea is to have a single board for my Malifaux games which means I would require a 90x90cm (3'x3') board. At this point, presumably wooden. Then I started planning what features to place on my board. I decided to go with a frozen river, with a couple of crossings one of which would be a bridge. I'd also want at least one road and several paths that wouldn't be (entirely) covered with snow. I'd also want to add some levels to my board so it wouldn't be just flat. Two or three levels would be perfect. Since this wouldn't be a fixed terrain board, I'd still need plenty of flat areas to place the scenery before my games. Right about this time during the planning, I remembered I had some untouched resin terrain pieces from a Croatian company called Tabletop World. They produce high quality resin terrain. However, they only to fantasy/medieval type of buildings. I decided to use them as mock-up for my future terrain for Malifaux while planning out the outline.

Planning

So, once the planning was done, I compiled a list of needs and wants that would hopefully help me with the material and tool lists as well as keep me focused on the project itself (so I don't add too many extra details that would clutter the board):
1. one board, single piece, sturdy and not easily broken N
1.1. size of the entire board: 90 x 90cm (or as close as possible) N
2. Water feature N
2.1. frozen river N
2.2. several crossings of the river N
2.3. one of the crossings should be a proper bridge W
3. roads etc. W
3.1. dirt paths – several leading from areas reserved for buildings to the main road N
3.2. main road – leading to and from the bridge (or wide crossing) N
4. levels N
4.1. second level (2cm – height of a single HD styrofoam board) N
4.2. third level (if possible – 2x 2cm HD styrofoam board or single 5cm board) W
5. flat areas for future terrain and buildings N
6. materials to be used – as light as possible W
7. frame – sturdy that won't bend or break easily to protect the main body of the board N

After the list was compiled, already some things were begining to become clear so I could make my preliminary sketch. Fortunately, right about the time I was starting this project, the Mrs and I decided to get rid of our bed base that was made of two solid 19mm thick plywood boards which happened to be 90x200cm in size. So I figured, I'd cut one board into two 90x90cm piceces and have bases for two boards. Almost perfect as I would need to do some preparation work on the board to plug the holes and fill the edges where the board was cut. As for the rest of the needs and wants, I'd need something to make the frame (at this point, presumably some wooden slats), several pieces of HD styrofoam, some roots and some slate. Rest of the materials would be usual – super glue, PVA glue, several types of gravel and sand, some DAS clay and some plaster. For the river, I will need some resin – but not too much as the whole idea is to have a shallow, frozen river. In the end obviously, I'd also need copious ammounts of snow material, something to make ice and several packages of paste to make the icicles.

- glues - PVA 1kg, 1x10g Superglue
- paints and spreys - 6 Pebeo Deco Paints (Black, White, Grey, Brown, Ochre and Ash), one black, ash, off white and pure white matt acrylic spreys and one clear matt acrylic sprey
- large brushes No 90, No 40
- airbrush
- brush size 16
- high density styrofoam - 1 board (1200 x 600 x 20 mm)
- high density styrofoam – 1 board (1200 x 600 x 50 mm)
- wooden slats - four pieces (25 or 30 x 5 x 1000 mm)
- up to twenty M2,5x15 screws
- balsa wood 4mm thick (10 x 1000 mm)
- DAS air drying clay (1kg)
- plaster (1 kg)
- sand and gravel (four or five sizes)
- small bagful of slate
- several roots
- plastic foil
- static grass and scatter (three to four sorts)
- Resin (Gedeo Crystal Resin or just Extra Heavy Gel by Vallejo)
- NOCH icicles
- NOCH snow products (2 packages)
- NOCH ice crystals
- scalpel blade
- scissors
- screwdriver
- chisel and hammer
- electric drill
- pin-vice
- circular saw
- jig saw
- disc sander
- vibro-sander
- modeller's saw
- sanding paper
- masking tape

Here, I included both electric and hand held tools. Obviously, you can use only one of these. If you don't have electric ones, the hand held ones will do the job just the same. It'll just take a bit longer and perhapes make you sweat a little bit. I don't like sweat, so I use electric ones.

Also, when doing such a list, you can also add the location of a store where you can buy those items and it'll make your shopping easier and faster. When all summed up, I reckon, my board wouldn't cost a lot (apart from the snow and water feature accessories).

Preparation work

As mentioned above, the first thing I had to do was to fill the round holes in the board. I had a long debate how to do it, but in the end I decided the easiest way would be to fill it with plaster. So I cut enough pieces of plastic foil and taped them to one side (that would be the top side) of the board using masking tape. Then I flipped the board over and I mixed about half a litre of plaster and poured it in the holes. The plaster was about 0,5-1cm thick. Once it cured, I decided to use PVA glue for added strength. I left the glue and plaster to cure for a couple of days as we were in the middle of the winter and I do all my terrain work in an unheated garage.

Start of the build

With the holes plugged, I could now finally start to build my board. Needless to say, I flipped the board over so the top side would be up and I removed the masking tape with the plastic foils. It was at this time that I took out the Tabletop World terrain and placed them around the board. Once I had them placed, I used my red and black markers to draw the design on the board itself. I wasn't quite satisfied with the setup so I replaced the bridge and drew its outline once again. I may actually use this bridge in my Malifaux games as well! When the outline was drawn, I cut the HD styrofoam bits to size and carefully placed them on my board. I also placed the TTW terrain on the styrofoam boards to make sure I have enough space around them for my models to move during games. When I was satisfied with the setup, I used PVA glue to glue the styrofoam boards in place. Also, I secured the bond using masking tape that would be removed once the PVA glue set.

Building the board frame

When the styrofoam bits were glued, I went on to do the frame of the board. In the DIY store, I managed to get four 25x5x1000mm linden slats. I cut them to size using my jig saw and making sure I had 1cm more than I needed to. This way, I could sand down the sides of the frames at 45 degree angle so they would fit perfectly.

Remember, you can always use a modeller's saw, sanding paper and screwdriver instead of jig saw, disc sander and a drill with screw end.

Using 5mm balsa wood, I cut several strips to plug the gap on one of the edges of the board and then proceeded to secure the frames to the board using M2,5x15 screws. I used three per side and once the screws were in place I filled the small crevices between the board and the frames using PVA glue for added strength of the bond.

IDEAS

During my Snowpocalypse entry (Frozen Stiff, by the way), I used slate to make the cliffs. For that build, I needed only a handful. But for this, I figured I'd need a bit more. Fortunately for me, the Medvednica hill next to Zagreb where I live, is full of slate so I decided to take a hike with a mate and go gather a bagful of broken stones. During these hikes, I like to take photos of nature as it is really a good source of inspiration. Once back, I had to wash the stones in soapy water to remove the dirt because the paint wouldn't stick to the stones properly otherwise. I used warm water and several repeats of the process until I got almost clear soapy water. I left it to dry for a couple of days near a heater. When the slate was dry, I stored them in two boxes. One was for really large pieces and the other was for smaller ones and debris. This would speed up the proces of choosing the stones while making the river bank and cliffs.

Making the Terrain Features

Breaking of the pieces of slate

One of the advantages of using slate is that it is a really soft material that is a result of its metamorphosis. It is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. Foliation may not correspond to the original sedimentary layering, but instead is in planes perpendicular to the direction of metamorphic compression. In other words, it is full of layers and by using just a little force, you can split it into smaller/thinner pieces. For that I wanted to use a chisel which I couldn't find. Being lazy, I dropped the search and I ended up using a normal screwdriver instead.

River banks

Once I had all the pieces of slate I needed, I proceeded to glue the slate along the future riverbank. I used pieces that were 0,5-1cm high and spread them evenly along the banks. I also glued several pieces inside the riverbed to form the future river crossings. It will be up to the players to decide whether it would be considered difficult terrain or not.

Cliffs

Originally, I wanted to make all the cliffs with slate. Just place them piece by piece and glue them in place. And afterwards, use plaster to plug the gaps between the styrofoam body of the „hill“ and the sides made from slate. However, overall there was over 3m of 2cm high cliffs so I decided against it. At least until I tried something first.

I placed a layer of DAS air drying clay around all my cliffs and I used a layer of watered down PVA glue to fix it better to the styrofoam sides. While the clay was still wet and malleable, I pressed a larger piece of slate into it to form the face of the cliff. Once I've done it to the entire cliff, I added smaller pieces of slate and stuck them into the clay and left them there to be glued. This way, I saved on rock and time as it was a really fast procedure with only slightly lower standard of finish.

Leveling of the terrain around the rocky river banks

As the riverbanks and the cliffs were now dry, I now had to level out the slightly higher area around the riverbank to the rest of the board. To do that, I once again made some plaster. It is the same one I used to plug the gaps on the board, but it turned pinky because I used the same water I used to soften up the red clay and it coloured the plaster. I made sure the plaster wasn't too much like a liquid. I wanted a consistency of a paste so that I could form the angle that I wanted and not have it run.

Sanding the plaster

While I was pouring the plaster to level the ground around the riverbanks, I noticed some of my plaster fills of the holes in the board protruded slightly. Because the holes were perfect circles, I needed to sand down the excess material because once the board was textured and painted, I would definitely show as too regular a form. I used my vibro-sander, but you could use normal sanding paper as well. When I was done with sanding, I made sure I collected all the debris from the board because the next step was texture!

Adding texture

Adding the texture has two main purposes. First one, obviously is the aesthetics. The more texture, the better the terrain looks. However, in some places there is another purpose to the texture. Depending on the materials you use (like styrofoam), some spreys may melt the base of your terrain which is something you definitely do not want. That's why you use watered down PVA glue mixed with some sand.

Luckily for me, most of my board is wooden and/or covered with plaster so I don't need to take care that the mixture of water and PVA be in favour of PVA so it offers a protective coat. However, there are some places where there is only styrofoam. Here, I will need to take care. That said, due to the whole theme of the board, all would not be lost if I missed the texture in several places. Why? because even if the sprey melts the styrofoam in places, the board will be covered in snow in the end so I can always cover up my mistakes.

Riverbed

I started with the riverbed first. As the whole idea of the river is that it is mostly frozen, I decided to use the simplest method and use just one size of sand, the smallest. I covered the entire surface of the river with slightly watered down PVA and sprinkled a layer of chinchilla sand. I left it to dry overnight.

Road and the dirt paths

I used several sizes of sand and gravel on the main road. As with the river, I first covered the entire area using a slightly diluted PVA glue with water (just enough so it would spread easily). I then sprinkled the largest grain sporadically in the middle of the road. Around the largest pieces I then sprinkled slightly smaller pebbles. In the end I finished with the smallest grain chinchilla sand.

Dirt paths and the areas where the buildings/other terrain would be placed during the games, was done only using chinchilla sand.

Other textures

Rest of the textures were done using two different sizes of grain. Somewhere in the middle between the small pebbles and chinchilla sand used on the main road. Once again, I smeared the watered down mixture of PVA glue. However, this time before sprinkling the sand, I placed several pieces of slate. I carefully picked the places where I placed them so that they wouldn't be in the way of the future terrain. This would add some more detail to the whole board and would help break the large flat areas even if the terrain isn't there. When I was satisfied with the placement and the quantity of slate pieces, I sprinkled the larger of the two grains followed by the smaller grain.

In the next article, I'll tackle the leftover sand and gravel that didn't glue to the base. Then I'll paint the board and add various vegetation. Water will also be added into the riverbed and I'll also be adding various winter accessories, like snow, ice and icicles.

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Star Wars Legion - Separatists Basing Article

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For the last year I’ve been trying to get my Star Wars Legion Separatists army ready for the table, so I can play a few games. One of the reasons I chose this faction (other than the fact that SW droids are great), is because droids paint, up quickly. I don’t need my army for this game to look display ready, I just want to get them ready fast, match their look from the films and be happy when I see them from a distance. To achieve this I’ve been fine-tuning their basing scheme throughout the year, and I’ve found a recipe that to me looks good enough, is relatively quick, and very easy to do (no brush control needed here). As I’m finishing my last unit for the game, I thought to share it. The scheme was originally supposed to look like Geonosis, but with time I’ve made it my own. But still this is fitting as the last unit I’m painting is the Star Wars Legion Geonosian Warriors (I love these sculpts - fiddly, but fantastic!)

I start out with a small ball of milliput that I place down in some random areas with my fingers. This is to create elevation. For me a flat base is always more boring than an uneven, elevated base.

I then use a sculpting tool (whichever I have on hand, doesn’t really matter as I’m not sculpting anything) with some water to smooth out the milliput, and make a few elevated areas.

I push a few small rocks down into the milliput before it cures. No need for glue here, that comes later. Also I’ve come to learn that uncured milliput and superglue is a very bad combo.

I crumple up a small piece of tin foil and poke it at the uncured milliput to create some texture.

Now the rocks will get fixed in place as I put a small amount of superglue all over the cured milliput, and the rest of the base as well. Then I use a teaspoon to sprinkle some baking powder all over the superglue. A minute later I wash the whole model under the sink, to get rid of excess baking powder.

I use a crackle paint from Citadel (Agrellan Earth) and cover the flatter area of the base with a good chunk of it.

When the crackle paint is dry I prime the model.

I paint the base using a combination of reddish and brownish, earthly tones. I just slap them all over the base haphazardly and without thinking, as later they will be brought together with a shade and some drybrushing. Paints I used here were Mephiston Red, Mournfang Brown and XV-88 from Citadel, as well as Burnt Sienna from Golden SoFlat.

Shade with Agrax Earthshade.

Lightly drybrush with a beige/grey/whitish color. I use Tyrant Skull and Wrack White as these are actual Dry paints from Citadel, and I still have them lying around.

I finish off the base with a few grass tufts. The drier they look the better. I also put a bit of Seraphim Sepia wash into the middle of the tufts to bring their color tone down a notch. And of course finish with a black base rim.

" ["content_hrv"]=> string(6658) "

Posljednjih godinu dana pokušavao sam pripremiti svoju vojsku Separatista iz Star Wars Legion, tako da mogu odigrati nekoliko partija. Jedan od razloga zašto sam odabrao ovu frakciju (osim činjenice da su SW droidi sjajni) je taj što droidi brzo bojaju. Ne treba mi vojska biti na visokom nivou obojana, samo ih želim brzo pripremiti, da odgovaraju izgledu iz filmova i biti sretan kad ih vidim iz daljine. Kako bih to postigao, fino sam prilagođavao njihovu shemu baziranja tijekom cijele godine i pronašao sam recept koji mi se čini dovoljno dobrim, relativno je brz i vrlo jednostavan za izvođenje (ovdje nije potrebna kontrola kista). Dok završavam svoju posljednju jedinicu za igru, mislio sam je podijeliti s vama. Shema je izvorno trebala izgledati kao Geonosis, ali s vremenom sam je napravio svojom. Ali ovo je ipak prikladno jer je posljednja jedinica koju bojam Star Wars Legion Geonosian Warriors (obožavam ove skulpture - nezgodne, ali fantastične!)

Započinjem s malom kuglicom miliputa koju stavljam prstima u neka nasumična područja. Ovo je za stvaranje uzvisina. Za mene je ravna podloga uvijek dosadnija od neravne, uzdignute podloge.

Zatim upotrijebim alat za oblikovanje (koji god imam pri ruci, zapravo nije važno jer ništa ne oblikujem) s malo vode da izravnam miliput i napravim nekoliko povišenih područja.

Gurnem nekoliko malih kamenčića u miliput prije nego se stvrdne. Ovdje nema potrebe za ljepilom, to dolazi kasnije. Također sam naučio da je nestvrdnuti milliput i superljepilo vrlo loša kombinacija.

Zgužvam mali komadić limene folije i ubodem ga u nestvrdnuti miliput kako bih stvorio malo teksture.

Sada će se kamenje učvrstiti na svoje mjesto jer stavljam malu količinu superljepila po cijelom stvrdnutom miliputu, kao i ostatku baze. Zatim čajnom žličicom posipam malo praška za pecivo po superljepilu. Minutu kasnije operem cijeli model u sudoperu, da se riješim viška praška za pecivo.

Koristim crackle boju od Citadela (Agrellan Earth) i pokrivam ravnije područje baze s debelim premazom.

Kad se crackle boja osuši, stavim primer na model.

Podlogu bojam kombinacijom crvenkastih i smećkastih, zemljanih tonova. Samo ih nasumično i bez razmišljanja udarim po cijeloj podlozi, jer će se kasnije spojiti s nijansom i malo suhog četkanja. Boje koje sam ovdje koristio bile su Mephiston Red, Mournfang Brown i XV-88 od Citadela, kao i Burnt Sienna od Golden SoFlata.

Zasjenim s Agrax Earthshade.

Lagano stavite sloj drybrusha bež/sive/bjelkaste boje. Koristim Tyrant Skull i Wrack White jer su to stvarne dry boje od Citadela i još uvijek ih imam uokolo.

Bazu dovršavam s nekoliko busenova trave. Što suše izgledaju to bolje. Također sam stavio malo Seraphim Sepia wash u sredinu busenova kako bih smanjio ton njihove boje. I naravno završiti s crnom bojom po rubu.

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Sebastian Søgård, 13th February 2025

We visited: Imp’s Shop in Ulm

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Last year I had the opportunity to visit Ulm, Germany again, and I wanted to take the opportunity to visit a hobby shop that is significantly different from most I have had the opportunity to visit in other places.

The store itself is located in the very center of the city, about 5 minutes walk from the Cathedral in the heart of the pedestrian zone. Passing through the old town, I strolled through a neighborhood where an incredible number of old houses and buildings have been preserved, and it looks like the architecture was straight out of GW's Old World. Arriving at the store, I was very surprised by the content on offer - like most hobby stores, they had a range of new goods, but they also had a range of second-hand products, some of them vintage by all standards. In glass cases stood painted, used figures for sale, some of them have been out of production for a long time. Shelves with old books and games that are real treasures for collectors, and some items are new, packaged, but again not something I would expect on the shelves of a typical hobby store.

New and Unexpected

Two full cabinets with shelves and boxes dedicated to DnD editions from the past

A large part of the store was dedicated to the local community, in my time During the visit, Magic was played, and the store is filled with players and hobbyists from different systems on different days.

The set was complete, I believe many people would benefit from having it in their collection

A large selection of miniatures of lesser-known games, including Schwartzes Auge RPG

After digging through the antiques in search of treasure, I filled my shopping bags and had very pleasant conversation with the owner. He was extremely kind throughout the visit, and helped me find things that I was interested in. My favorite part of the shopping was getting an Imp at Imp's Shop - if you're interested in seeing what it looks like when painted - visit our Black Queen Hobby and Miniature Painting Competition!

Imp from Imp's Shop!

And if your journey ever takes you to Ulm, be sure to visit this shop! If Ulm is not in your area, and you are interested in games and miniatures that are perhaps a little more mainstream or represented here, you can see Imp's offering on their website and web shop!

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Prošle godine imao sam priliku ponovno posjetiti Ulm u Njemačkoj, te sam htio iskoristiti priliku da posjetim jedan hobby dućan koji se bitno razlikuje od većine koju sam imao priliku posjetiti u drugim mjestima.

Sam dućan nalazi se u strogom centru grada, jedno 5 minuta pješice od Katedrale u srcu pješačke zone. Prolazeći starim gradom šetao sam se kvartom gdje je nevjerojatan broj starih kuća i zgrada očuvan, te izgleda kao arhitektura ravno preuzeta iz GW-ovog Old World-a. Dolaskom u dućan, bio sam jako iznenađen sadržajem koji se nudi - poput većine hobby dućana, imali su asortiman nove robe, no imali su i asortiman second hand proizvoda, neki od njih po svim mjerilima vintage. U staklenim vitrinama stajale su obojane, rabljene figure na prodaju, neke od njih već dugo vremena nisu u proizvodnji. Police sa starim knjigama i igrama koje kolekcijonarima predstavljaju pravo blago, a neki predmeti su novi, zapakirani, ali opet nisu nešto što bih očekivao na policama tipičnog hobby dućana.

Novo i Neočekivano

Dva puna ormara s policama i kutijama posvećeni edicijama DnD-a iz prošlih vremena

Veliki dio dućana je bio posvećen lokalnom community-u, u vrijeme moje posjete igrao se Magic, a u dućanu se tokom različitih dana nalaze igraći i hobisti iz različitih sustava.

Set je bio kompletan, vjerujem da bi mnogima dobro došlo u kolekciji

Veliki izbor miniatura manje poznatih igara, ukljućujući Schwartzes Auge RPG

Nakon što sam prekopao starine u potrazi za blagom, napunio sam vrećice za kupovinu i imao jako ugodan razgovor s vlasnikom. Tokom cijelog posjeta bio je izuzetno ljubazan, te mi je pomogao pronaći stvari koje bi me zanimale. Najdraži dio shopping mi je bila nabavka Imp-a u Imp’s Shopu - ukoliko vas zanima kako izgleda kad je obojan - posjetite našu Izložbu minijatura i maketa Agram 2025!

Imp iz Impove Trgovine!

A ukoliko vas put ikad odnese u Ulm, svakako posjetite ovaj dućan! Ukoliko vam Ulm nije usput, a zanimaju vas igre i minijature koje su možda malo main stream ili zastupljene kod nas, Impovu ponudu možete vidjeti i na njihovim web stranicama i web shopu!

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Domagoj Krpan, 4th February 2025

Preparation and painting with contrast/speedpaint paints – Cthulhu Wars

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In this article I describe my process of painting figurines with contrast and speedpaint paints. This is how I painted all the figurines I made for Cthulhu wars. I made them to be "tabletop ready", but I think that with these techniques, a higher quality figure can be achieved, with proper preparation and attention to the precision of details. An example from the pictures is an Acolyte model from the game.

The painting process was almost always the same, with slight variations in the primer and initial shading. The first step is of course the spray primer, which I started with white paint. This is where I did the most variation in the process because after a few tries, I ran out of white spray cans, then light gray, and ended up with a plain gray paint. I realized that the optimal color for this type of painting is light gray spray can – you want to emphasize the hollows of the figure, but not kill the shadow color (like you would with a black or dark gray primer). The light gray spray provides a good base for the shade colors that I apply in the second step, emphasizes the contrast with the white drybrush, and leaves me with the dark color that I apply in the later stages.

The next step, regardless of the tone of the primer I applied, was to apply the shade colors from GW. Which color it was, depended on the primary color I wanted to achieve. For example, for red, blue, and yellow, I prefer a purple, or at least an approximate purple shade. In the example of this model, I used Carroburg Crimson, which is a purple-red tone. Likewise, for green, I used Athonian Camoshade, but in retrospect I should have gone for a warm shade (like red), I like the difference in warmth between contrasting tones better. I colored the leather and books/papers with Seraphim Sepia, the easiest way to contrast the skin color later.

After the shade paint dried, I applied a white drybrush over the entire figure. This is the final step to prepare the figure for painting diluted colors such as contrast.

Let's start with contrasting colors. Given the simplicity of this model, I applied maybe two colors in total, but I did the same thing on more complicated figures. Red over the dress, paying attention to the separate parts I wanted more beige, skin color on skin, brown on the book and Skeleton horde for the beige parts (to get the dirty fabric effect). I used speedpaint medium on many of the dark contrasting colors to thin them out, but sometimes it didn't work very well. On large areas, such thinned paint leaves stains that need to be cleaned up.

The last step is to define the details of the model and potentially add highlights. In this case, I subtly touched up the red stain with a lighter red drybrush, painted the dagger with off-white, painted the belt, and added patterns to the open pages of the book. The model is now tabletop ready and the entire process takes about 20 minutes of painting. The only downside is that you have to wait for the various thinned layers to dry, but I usually plan on painting other models in that time.

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U ovom članku opisujem svoj proces bojanja figurica sa contrast i speedpaint bojama. Na ovaj način sam obojao sve figurice koje sam radio za Cthulhu wars. Ja sam ih radio da budu „tabletop ready“, no mislim da se ovim tehnikama može postići i veća kvaliteta figure, sa pravilnom pripremom i pažnjom na preciznost detalja. Primjer iz slika je jedan Acolyte model iz igre.

Postupak bojanja je skoro uvijek bio isti, sa blagim varijacijama u primeru i početnom sjenčanju. Prvi korak je naravno primer u spreju, koji sam počeo sa bijelom bojom. Tu sam radio najviše varijacija u procesu zbog toga što su mi se nakon par vojski ispraznili prvo bijeli sprej, pa onda svijetlo sivi i time sam završio na običnom sivoj boji. Shvatio sam da je optimalna boja za ovaj tip bojanja svijetlosivi sprej – želite da se naglase udubine figure, no ne i da se ubije boja sjene (kao što bi bilo sa crnim ili tamnosivim primerom). Svijetlosivi sprej daje dobru podlogu za shade boje koje stavljam u drugom koraku, naglašava kontrast sa bijelim drybrushem i ostaje mi tamna boja koju nanosim u kasnijim fazama.

Sljedeći korak, nevezano za ton primera koji sam nanio, je primjena shade boja od GW-a. Koja boja je bila, ovisilo je o primarnoj boji koju sam htio postići. Npr. Za crvenu, plavu, i žutu, preferiram ljubičasti, ili barem aproksimativno ljubičasti shade. U primjeru ovog modela koristio sam Carroburg Crimson, što je ljubičasto-crveni ton. Isto tako, za zelenu sam koristio Athonian Camoshade, no u retrospektivi sam trebao isto ići na topao ton sjene (poput crvenog), više mi paše raditi razliku u toplini između kontrastnih tonova. Kožu i knjige/papire sam bojao sam seraphim sepiom, najjednostavnije za odnos contrasta boje kože kasnije.

Nakon sušenja shade boje, nanio sam bijeli drybrush po cijeloj figuri. To je zadnji korak za pripremu figure za bojanje razrijeđenih boja poput contrasta.

Počinjemo sa contrast bojama. S obzirom na jednostavnost ovog modela, nanio sam možda dvije boje sveukupno, no istu stvar sam radio i na kompliciranijim figurama. Crvena preko halje, pazeći na odvojene dijelove koje sam htio više bež, boja kože na koži, smeđa na knjizi i Skeleton horde za bež dijelove (da bi se dobio efekt prljave tkanine). Koristio sam speedpaint medium za mnoge tamne contrast boje da bi ih razrijedio, no nekad nije najbolje upalilo. Na velikim površinama takva razrijeđena boja ostavi mrlje koje se trebaju sanirati.

Zadnji korak je definiranje detalja modela i potencijalno dodatno naglašavanje highlighta. U ovom slučaju suptilno sam popravljao mrljavu crvenu sa drybrushem svijetlije crvene, obojao bodež sa offwhite, obojao remen i dodao šare na otvorenim stranicama knjige. Model je time tabletop ready i sveukupni proces traje nekih 20ak minuta samog bojanja. Jedina mana je što čekate da se razni razrijeđeni slojevi osuše, no u tom vremenu najčešće planiram bojanje drugih modela.

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Mario Grgurev, 4th February 2025

Zvonimir Grbašić: The Templars at War

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	Some of you who follow our social networks may have noticed our Ana reading an interesting book at our last Hobby Corner on Wednesdays. As part of the Library and Reading Room, we have acquired a new title. This time it may be a bit of a strange combination. A book by an author with a Zagreb residence, but in English. It is The Templars at War by Zvonimir Grbašić.

	

	Zvonimir Grbašić is the author of hundreds of illustrations and paintings published in books, magazines, graphic maps and calendars, in Croatia and worldwide. Military history is the main theme, and the technique is acrylic paint, tempera and pencil. This book follows the history of the Templars from their beginnings to the end of the order.

	

	It is a true historical book that explains to the reader the history of this, perhaps the most famous, knightly order in an enjoyable way.

	

	It is a true historical book that explains to the reader the history of this, perhaps the most famous, knightly order in an enjoyable way.

	

	In addition to the interesting text, what primarily attracted us to this edition were the author's illustrations, which faithfully follow the text and captivate the medieval world. In addition to the illustrations, there are also hand-drawn maps that show the course of battles.

	

	

	

	

	

	Finally, the author has announced a Croatian, expanded edition, which we are also looking forward to! And while we wait, if you are interested, you can read the book during our hours on Wednesdays from 6:00 PM to 8:00 PM, and if you are our member, you can also borrow it!
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	Neki od vas, koji prate naše društvene mreže, su možda zapazili našu Anu kako čita jednu zanimljivu knjigu na našem zadnjem Hobby kutku srijedom. U sklopu Knjižnice i čitaonice nabavili smo novi naslov. Ovoga puta to je možda malo čudna kombinacija. Knjiga, autora sa zagrebačkom rezidencijom, ali na engleskom jeziku. Riječ je o The Templars at War Zvonimira Grbašića.

	

	Zvonimir Grbašić autor je stotina ilustracija i slika objavljenih u knjigama, časopisima, grafičkim mapama i kalendarima, u Hrvatskoj i svijetu. Vojna povijest je osnovna tematika, a tehnika akrilne boje, tempera i olovka. Ova knjiga prati povijest Templara od svojih začetaka pa do kraja reda.

	

	Prava je povijesna knjiga koja na pitki način objašnjava čitatelju povijest ovog, možda najpoznatijeg, viteškog reda.

	

	Pored zanimljivog teksta, ono što nas je primarno privuklo ovom izdanju su ilustracije autora koje vjerno prate tekst i očaravaju srednjevjekovni svijet. Pored ilustracija, tu su i ručno crtane mape koje prikazuju tijek borbi.

	

	

	

	

	

	

	Za kraj, autor je najavio i hrvatsko, prošireno, izdanje čemu se također veselimo! A dok čekamo, ukoliko ste zainteresirani, knjigu možete pročitati u našim terminima srijedama od 18:00 do 20:00, a ukoliko ste naš član, možete ju i posuditi!
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Marko Paunović, 31nd January 2025

Quest for my new favourite washes

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Note from the editor: This is an article published on Ana’s blog that she kindly agreed to share on our club web pages. If you like the article, go for more on her site Gardens of Hecate!

Sometime in November I had reached the end of my stock of old formula Agrax Earthshade and Nuln Oil, and cracked open the new ones (I say new, but they’re a few years old by now). I was disappointed with the currently standing product… I’ve been steadily using Citadel washes since they were first introduced. Originally it was Badab Black and Devlan Mud, and they were fantastic (yes, there were inks before that - but I never used those). At some point they got replaced by Nuln Oil and Agrax Earthshade, respectively. Frankly I don’t recall how big of a change that was; it was a fairly long time ago. However, I know that I’ve gradually phased out most Citadel paints from my arsenal in favour of other brands (predominantly Scale 75, but there are several others represented) - while still continuing to use and recommend Citadel’s black and brown wash. However, now they’ve changed too far for the worse that I decided it’s time to look elsewhere.

I asked my Instagram audience for viable alternatives on the market and I got 60+ responses with suggestions. Based on that I purchased a variety of options for brown and black washes and inks to test. Additionally, a significant number of commenters expressed they were in the same predicament, so I promised to share my findings in a blog post. This is it.

Since making the purchases I’ve made swatches, tests in controlled conditions, and tried them out in real situations on whatever painting projects I was working on at the time.

Disclaimer: I am not sponsored by or affiliated with the manufacturers of any of these products. They were purchased with funds contributed by my Patreon supporters (thank you!). I’m honestly looking for a better alternative for myself and taking you along for the ride.

I’d also like to thank @noe.hammer and @hinter_light for sending me bottles of unused old Agrax Earthshade they had lying around.

What am I even looking for in a wash?

I use brown and black washes frequently. It’s normally for shading things such as leather, armour, fabrics, wood, human skin, and more.

My ideal wash would be well pigmented acrylic, usable out of the pot but dilutable with water if I want a less stark shade, reliably matte when dry, and not brazenly overpriced.

INTENSITY and HUE

Of the above, the current Citadel washes only fulfill the first thing on my list. They do still provide a good shade to those recesses and details on the sculpt. I also like the colour of the brown. Not too intense to be used as is, but often I want to dilute them slightly. I expected some brands of washes would be less intense, and if I wanted something stronger there are inks.

Inks definitely need to be combined with a medium for two reasons: they’re glossy and they’re too highly pigmented to be used straight out of the pot. I have the following three inks: AK Wood Brown, Vallejo Sepia, and Scale75 Inktense Wood. They all behaved as predicted, working nicely with Lahmian Medium. A little ink goes a long way and the medium successfully mattes out the ink’s original gloss. Each has its own hue, my favourite of the three being Vallejo’s.

Army Painter Warpaints Soft Tone, Strong Tone, and Dark Tone are overall the most similar to Citadel’s washes, including the intensity. ProAcryl and Two Thin Coats are the least intense, but ultimately they’re all acceptable.

Each brown wash has a slightly different hue, as you can see on the tombstone swatches basecoated white. They all work fine and the difference was less apparent when I applied on a brown basecoat.

ACRYLIC

Some of my Instagram friends recommended oils to me. I do occasionally use oil and enamel washes when I paint scenery. They’re effective and cool to play with. However, they don’t get along with other paints I use - meaning varnishing in between and thinking several steps ahead. They also have annoyingly long drying times. This is ok for terrain, but simply doesn’t work for the way I paint miniatures and I don’t want to drastically change my process right now. I like how it is. Same reason my airbrush sits in the drawer seldom used. Their time may come, it’s just not today.

That’s why there are no oils or enamels in this story.

BEHAVIOUR WITH WATER

Mixing a wash with water can leave a cloudy/chalky residue in the recesses (see image below for examples). Of the washes I've tried, most experienced the chalky residue when mixed with water at some point. Sometimes it happens, sometimes it doesn’t. I hear hard water makes this worse. In any case, it’s safer to use an acrylic medium rather than water. With older Citadel Washes I usually used water and it would occasionally result in a nasty surprise. With the new formula the clouding happened most times I did it.

I can absolutely live with using medium instead of water to make sure the results are consistent. This is the part of my ideal wash I’m ready to forfeit easiest. Any matte medium will be more expensive than water, but there are way more affordable options than Citadel’s Lahmian Medium I currently use. It’s something to look into next.

MATTE FINISH

New Agrax and Nuln Oil straight out of the pot are glossy and this annoys me to no end. Mixing in Lahmian Medium, which normally does have a matting effect, is a must even if I don’t want to dilute my wash. But often that doesn’t help either. There were times new Agrax Earthshade refused to stop being glossy in the recesses even when I painted matte varnish over it.

Mind you, the shine in the recesses may also happen to other brands if one applies too much undiluted wash, or if not shaken properly before use.

A few people recommended a product called Instar Matte+. It’s a concentrated additive that’s meant to be mixed into paints to turn them matte. I got advice to put several drops directly into my bottle of my Agrax or Nuln. I did just that, and it actually killed the shine. That’s great news, since it means I can save those several bottles of new Citadel washes I stockpiled before I realised they were no good.

When playing around with Matte+ I tried mixing it with inks to see what happens. It does make them matte, but they get a similar residue problem washes get with water. In this case, though, the result looks like a decent rust effect. I’m not sure if it’s worth exploring further, but below is what it looks like.

PRICE

Price is not something I thought about too much before I started crunching these numbers. It was interesting and eye-opening.

Shipping is not included in the prices. Local tax of 25% is included. Keep in mind the price of each product can vary slightly from vendor to vendor. I had to order from multiple webshops depending on availability and stock. They come in different size vials so in order to compare properly I calculated their price per mL (given in brackets).

The most affordable was AK Deep Shade Grime at 4,89€ for a 30mL bottle (0,16€/mL). It’s closely followed by Vallejo washes at 3,10 € for 18 mL (0,17€/mL) and then The Army Painter tone trio at 3,49€ for 18mL (0,19€/mL).

Next tier are Pro Acryl 22mL for 5,99€ (0,27€/mL) and Duncan’s TTC washes at 4,41€ for 15mL (0.29€/mL).

And finally we have Citadel’s 18mL for 6.63€ (0,37€/mL), which makes it double the price of the stuff in the first group. Ugh.

I won’t compare the inks along with the washes because they must to be used with a hefty quantity of medium. A pot of ink will last you drastically longer than a pot of wash, but you need to purchase medium alongside it, complicating the calculation. I didn’t go into it this time. Here are the prices of the inks, though: AK Wood Brown INK was 4,68 € for 30mL (0,16€/mL), Vallejo Sepia Ink 18 ml was 3,10€ (0,17/mL), and S75 Inktense Wood 17mL for 4,04€ (0,24€/mL).

Instar Matte + additive was 2,03€ for their container of 10mL (0,20/mL). It gets cheaper if you buy a larger bottle, but you’re meant to be using it in very small doses anyway.

CONTAINER

This is not a deciding factor for me, but there are differences I can touch on briefly.

To get Citadel out of the way first: pot with a lid. Knocked it over and spilled so many times over the years. One may call that a skill issue. I don’t know. Dipping a brush in the pot rather than squirting it on the palette somehow makes more sense for washes to me, so that’s a point for it. When it comes to Citadel’s other paints I strongly dislike the pots, mostly because their design really helps the paint dry up faster. I’m not sure myself how I feel about it on the washes, though.

AK Pure Grime comes in a bottle with a screw-on cap. I haven’t used it enough to witness how easily it’s knocked over, but since it doesn’t have a lid sticking up my guess is it’s safer from spillage than Citadel.

Army Painter comes in a standard dropper bottle, same as Scale 75 uses. Vallejo used to have something just like it, but these washes and ink come in dropper bottles made of way thinner material. I accidentally squeezed them too hard lots of times, so not a fan. The reason behind it is ecological perhaps?

Two Thin Coats - bottle is fine but something is funky with the cap. The wash always heavily leaks inside it. Perhaps it must be screwed on 100% tight to stop doing that? Not happy about the mess. Again, you may say it’s a skill issue, but I haven’t had that problem with any other brand’s dropper bottle.

PorAcryl’s bottle has a special cap I hadn’t encountered before. It slightly twists off to allow drops to get out of the bottle. I’m pretty sure this is well resistant to clogging (which is an annoyance with dropper bottles) and doesn’t allow any air to get in. But it’s sort of messy to close it since there is always some paint stuck near the tip that has to be wiped off.

Finally, the AK Ink comes in a glass bottle with a dropper cap, and the Matte+ comes in a tiny dropper bottle with a safety cap. Works fine.

CONCLUSIONS

After this I’m definitely saying goodbye to Citadel’s washes. I’ll rescue the pots I already have with Instar Matte+ and never buy another again. The price is severly inflated when compared to any other brand, while the quality is poorer in most aspects and it requires me to spend even more money on third party products to make it work.

TwoThinCoats washes were a very common suggestion. It’s among the pricier options, but doesn’t stand out enought to compensate for that. It’s fine, but won’t be my new brand of choice.

Army Painter washes are a really popular option. They’re on the more affordable end and my LGS stocks them, making them extra accessible. They are also among the least matte ones, but matte medium consistently fixes that. Fine, but not a favourite.

Vallejo washes are high on my tier list. They’re nicely matte out of the pot and I rather like the hue of their Umber wash. The price is also among the best.

ProAcryl is also a good one. Nice flow, matte finish. The hue and price place it beneath Vallejo for me, though.

AK Deep Shades Pure Grime is quite a bit more viscous than the others. It stays where you put it, which usually means it will harder stain the areas you don’t want shaded. It was the least costly. The hue is nice, but the intensity feels lighter. Overall for me it’s mid.

The inks - AK, Vallejo, and S75 all three act the same in my limited experience. When it comes to hue I’m partial to Vallejo’s Umber. I’m actually interested in using them further in combination with matte medium. They are better value for money than an out of the pot wash.

Along similar lines, I tried to mix my own wash by combining Scalecolor Artist Burnt Umber with Lahmian Medium. It was prety good, and once again much cheaper than any out-of-the-pot wash.

If I had to choose which wash was my favourite I’d say Vallejo. But I think my future may be finding a decent but not overpriced matte medium and mixing my own washes. I already have to use a medium if I want to dilute a wash, so I migh as well get my pigment from an ink or a quality acrylic paint in the first place.

I’ll continue to use a selection of these washes further until they run out. If I change my mind about something I may revisit this topic in the future.

Everything in this article is my own opinion based on my experience trying the products.

Što uopće tražim u washevima?

Često koristim smeđu i crnu boju. Obično je za sjenčanje stvari kao što su koža, oklopi, tkanine, drvo, ljudska koža i drugo.

Moj idealan tuš bio bi dobro pigmentirani akril, koji bi se mogao koristiti i iz bočice, ali bi se mogao razrijediti vodom ako želim manje jaku nijansu, pouzdano mat kada se osuši, a ne drsko precijenjen.

INTENZITET i HUE

Od navedenog, trenutni washevi od Citadel ispunjavaju samo prvu uvjet na mom popisu. Još uvijek daju dobru sjenu u udubljenjima i detaljima na skulpturi. Sviđa mi se i smeđa boja. Nisu previše intenzivni da bi se koristili takvi kakvi jesu, ali često ih želim malo razrijediti. Očekivala sam da će neke marke washeva biti manje intenzivna, a ako sam htjela nešto jače tu su tinte.

Tinte svakako treba kombinirati s medijem iz dva razloga: sjajne su i previše su pigmentirane da bi se mogle koristiti izravno iz posude. Imam sljedeće tri tinte: AK Wood Brown, Vallejo Sepia i Scale75 Inktense Wood. Svi su se ponašali prema predviđanjima, dobro surađujući s Lahmian Mediumom. Malo tinte ide daleko i medij uspješno matira izvorni sjaj tinte. Svaka ima svoju nijansu, a meni je od te tri najdraža Vallejova.

Army Painter Warpaints Soft Tone, Strong Tone i Dark Tone općenito su najsličniji Citadel washevima, uključujući intenzitet. ProAcryl i Two Thin Coats su najmanje intenzivni, ali u konačnici svi su prihvatljivi.

Svaka smeđa boja ima nešto drugačiju nijansu, kao što možete vidjeti na uzorcima nadgrobnih spomenika s osnovnim bijelim premazom. Svi rade dobro i razlika je bila manje vidljiva kada sam nanijela smeđi bazni lak.

Što uopće tražim u washevima?

Često koristim smeđu i crnu boju. Obično je za sjenčanje stvari kao što su koža, oklopi, tkanine, drvo, ljudska koža i drugo.

INTENZITET i HUE

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Napomena urednika: Ovo je članak objavljen na Aninom blogu koji je ljubazno pristala podijeliti na web stranicama naše udruge. Ako vam se sviđa članak, potražite više na njezinoj stranici Gardens of Hecate!

Negdje u studenom došla sam do kraja svojih zaliha stare formule Agrax Earthshade i Nuln Oil i otvorila sam nove (kažem nove, ali sada su stare nekoliko godina). Razočarana sam tim proizvodima… Stalno koristim Citadel washeve otkako su prvi put predstavljene. Izvorno su to bile Badab Black i Devlan Mud, i bile su fantastične (da, postojale su tinte i prije toga - ali ih nikad nisam koristila). U nekom trenutku su ih zamijenili Nuln Oil i Agrax Earthshade. Iskreno govoreći, ne sjećam se kolika je to bila promjena; bilo je to prilično davno. Međutim, znam da sam postupno izbacila većinu Citadel boja iz svog arsenala u korist drugih marki (pretežno Scale 75, ali postoji nekoliko drugih koje koristim) - dok sam i dalje nastavila koristiti Citadelove crnu i smeđu boju. Međutim, sada su se previše promijenili na gore da sam odlučila da je vrijeme da ih potražim negdje drugdje.

Pitala sam publiku na Instagramu za održive alternative na tržištu i dobila sam više od 60 odgovora s prijedlozima. Na temelju toga kupila sam razne opcije za smeđe i crne boje i tinte za testiranje. Osim toga, značajan broj komentatora rekao je da se nalazi u istoj nevolji, pa sam obećala podijeliti svoja otkrića u postu na blogu. To je to.

Od kupnje napravila sam uzorke, testirala u kontroliranim uvjetima i isprobala ih u stvarnim situacijama na svim farbačkim projektima na kojima sam u to vrijeme radila.

Odricanje od odgovornosti: Nisam sponzorirana niti povezana s proizvođačima bilo kojeg od ovih proizvoda. Kupljene su sredstvima koje su priložili moji podržavatelji na Patreonu (hvala!). Iskreno tražim bolju alternativu za sebe i vodim vas na taj put sa sobom.

Također bih željela zahvaliti @noe.hammer i @hinter_light što su mi poslali boce neiskorištenog starog Agrax Earthshadea koje su ležale uokolo.

Što uopće tražim u washevima?

Često koristim smeđu i crnu boju. Obično je za sjenčanje stvari kao što su koža, oklopi, tkanine, drvo, ljudska koža i drugo.

INTENZITET i HUE

AKRIL

Neki moji Instagram prijatelji preporučili su mi ulja. Povremeno koristim ulje i emajl kad slikam krajolike. Učinkoviti su i zgodni za igru. Međutim, ne slažu se s drugim bojama koje koristim - što znači lakiranje između i razmišljanje nekoliko koraka unaprijed. Također imaju iritantno dugo vrijeme sušenja. Ovo je u redu za teren, ali jednostavno ne funkcionira za način na koji farbam minijature i ne želim sada drastično promijeniti svoj proces. Sviđa mi se kako je. Iz istog razloga moj airbrush stoji u ladici i rijetko se koristi. Njihovo vrijeme može doći, samo nije danas.

Zato u ovoj priči nema ulja ni emajla.

PONAŠANJE S VODOM

Miješanje washeva s vodom može ostaviti zamućen/kredast talog u udubljenjima. Od washeva koje sam isprobala, kod većine su se u nekom trenutku pojavili kredasti ostaci kad se pomiješaju s vodom. Ponekad se dogodi, ponekad ne. Čujem da je tvrda voda još gora. U svakom slučaju, sigurnije je koristiti akrilni medij nego vodu. Za starije Citadel washeve obično sam koristila vodu i to bi povremeno rezultiralo gadnim iznenađenjem. S novom formulom zamućenje se događalo većinu puta kada sam to radila.

Apsolutno mogu živjeti s upotrebom medija umjesto vode kako bih bio sigurna da su rezultati dosljedni. Ovo je dio mog idealnog procesa nanošenja washeva kojeg se najlakše odričem. Svaki mat medij bit će skuplji od vode, ali postoje puno pristupačnije opcije od Citadelovog Lahmian Mediuma koji trenutno koristim. To je nešto što treba razmotriti sljedeće.

MAT FINIŠ

Novi Agrax i Nuln Oil izravno iz posude su sjajni i to me beskrajno nervira. Miješanje Lahmian Mediuma, koji inače ima učinak matiranja, obavezno je čak i ako ne želim razrijediti svoje washeve. Ali često ni to ne pomaže. Bilo je trenutaka kada je novi Agrax Earthshade odbijao prestati biti sjajan u udubljenjima čak i kad sam ga premazala mat lakom.

Imajte na umu da se sjaj u udubljenjima može dogoditi i drugim markama ako se nanese previše nerazrijeđenog washa ili ako se prije upotrebe ne protrese dobro.

Nekoliko je ljudi preporučilo proizvod pod nazivom Instar Matte+. To je koncentrirani aditiv koji se treba miješati u boje kako bi postale mat. Dobila sam savjet da stavim nekoliko kapi izravno u svoju bočicu svog Agraxa ili Nulna. Učinila sam upravo to, i to je zapravo ubilo sjaj. To je sjajna vijest, jer to znači da mogu spasiti onih nekoliko boca novih Citadelovih washeva koje sam nakupila prije nego što sam shvatila da ne valjaju.

Kad sam se igrala s Matte+, pokušala sam ga pomiješati s tintama da vidim što će se dogoditi. Čini ih matiranim, ali imaju sličan problem s ostacima kao kod kombinacije washa s vodom. Međutim, u ovom slučaju rezultat izgleda kao pristojan učinak hrđe. Nisam sigurna isplati li se dalje istraživati, ali u nastavku je kako izgleda.

CIJENA

Cijena nije nešto o čemu sam previše razmišljala prije nego što sam počela drobiti ove brojke. Bilo je zanimljivo i otvaralo je oči.

Poštarina nije uključena u cijene. Uključen je PDV od 25%. Imajte na umu da se cijena svakog proizvoda može malo razlikovati od dobavljača do dobavljača. Morala sam naručivati iz više webshopova ovisno o dostupnosti i zalihama. Dolaze u bočicama različitih veličina pa sam, kako bih mogala ispravno usporediti, izračunala njihovu cijenu po ml (navedenu u zagradama).

Najpovoljniji je bio AK Deep Shade Grime od 4,89 € za bočicu od 30 ml (0,16 €/mL). Odmah ga slijede Vallejo washevi po 3,10 € za 18 mL (0,17 €/mL), a zatim The Army Painter tone trio po 3,49 € za 18 mL (0,19 €/mL).

Sljedeća razina su Pro Acryl 22 mL za 5,99 € (0,27 €/mL) i Duncan’s TTC pranje po 4,41 € za 15 mL (0,29 €/mL).

I na kraju imamo Citadelove 18mL za 6,63 € (0,37 €/mL), što ga čini duplo većom cijenom od proizvoda iz prve skupine. Uf.

Neću uspoređivati tinte zajedno s washevima jer se moraju koristiti s velikom količinom medija. Bočica s tintom trajat će vam drastično dulje od bočice washa, ali uz nju morate kupiti medij, što komplicira izračun. Ovaj put nisam ulazila u to. No, evo cijena tinti: AK Wood Brown INK je bila 4,68 € za 30 mL (0,16 €/mL), Vallejo Sepia Ink 18 ml je bila 3,10 € (0,17/mL), a S75 Inktense Wood 17mL za 4,04€ (0,24€/mL).

Instar Matte + aditiv je bio 2,03€ za njihovu ambalažu od 10mL (0,20/mL). Postaje jeftinije ako kupite veću bočicu, ali ionako biste ga trebali koristiti u vrlo malim dozama.

BOČICA

Ovo za mene nije odlučujući faktor, ali postoje razlike kojih se mogu ukratko osvrnuti.

Da prvo maknete Citadel s puta: bočica s poklopcem. Prevrnula ga i prolila toliko puta tijekom godina. To se može nazvati problemom vještine. ne znam. Umakanje kista u posudu umjesto prskanja po paleti nekako mi ima više smisla za washeve, tako da je to točka za to. Što se tiče Citadelovih ostalih boja, izrazito mi se ne sviđaju bočice, ponajviše zato što njihov dizajn stvarno pomaže da se boja brže suši. Ipak, nisam sigurna kako se osjećam u vezi s tim kod washeva.

AK Pure Grime dolazi u bočici s čepom na odvrtanje. Nisam ga dovoljno koristila da bih vidjela kako se lako prevrće, ali budući da nema poklopac koji viri, pretpostavljam da je sigurniji od prolijevanja od Citadela.

Army Painter dolazi u standardnoj bočici s kapaljkom, kao što koristi Scale 75. Vallejo je nekada imao nešto slično, ali ove boje i tinta dolaze u bočicama s kapaljkama napravljenim od mnogo tanjeg materijala. Slučajno sam ih jako stisnula mnogo puta, tako da nisam obožavatelj. Razlog tome je možda ekološki?

Two Thin Coats - bočica je u redu, ali nešto je čudno s čepom. Wash uvijek jako curi iz njega. Možda mora biti pritegnut 100% čvrsto da to prestane raditi? Nisam sretna zbog nereda. Opet, možete reći da je to problem vještine, ali ja nisam imala takav problem s bočicom s kapaljkom bilo koje druge marke.

PorAcrylova bočica ima poseban čep s kojim se prije nisam susrela. Lagano se uvija kako bi kapljice mogle izaći iz bočice. Prilično sam sigurna da je ovo otporno na začepljenje (što je smetnja s bočicama s kapaljkama) i da ne dopušta ulazak zraka. Ali malo je neuredno zatvoriti ga jer uvijek ima malo boje zaglavljene blizu vrha koji mora se obrisati.

Konačno, AK tinta dolazi u staklenoj bočici s kapaljkom, a Matte+ dolazi u maloj bočici s kapaljkom sa sigurnosnim čepom. Dobro radi.

ZAKLJUČCI

Nakon ovoga definitivno se opraštam od Citadelovih washeva. Spasit ću bočice koje već imam s Instar Matte+ i nikad više neću kupiti drugi. Cijena je ozbiljno prenapuhana u usporedbi s bilo kojim drugim brendom, dok je kvaliteta lošija u većini aspekata i zahtijeva od mene da potrošim još više novca na proizvode trećih strana da bi funkcionirao.

TwoThinCoats wash je vrlo čest prijedlog. Među skupljim je opcijama, ali se ne ističe dovoljno da to nadoknadi. U redu je, ali neće biti moj novi izbor marke.

Army Painter washevi su stvarno popularna opcija. Pristupačniji su i moj LGS ih ima na zalihama, što ih čini dodatno dostupnima. Također su među najmanje matiranima, ali mat medij to dosljedno popravlja. Dobro, ali ne i omiljeno.

Vallejo washevi su visoko na mom popisu. Lijepo su mat iz bočice i jako mi se sviđa nijansa njihove Umber boje. Cijena je također među najboljima.

ProAcryl je također dobar. Lijep protok, mat finiš. Ipak, boja i cijena ga za mene stavljaju ispod Valleja.

AK Deep Shades Pure Grime je malo viskozniji od ostalih. Ostaje tamo gdje ga stavite, što obično znači da će teže zaprljati područja koja ne želite zasjeniti. Najmanje je skupa opcija. Nijansa je lijepa, ali je intenzitet svjetliji. Sveukupno za mene je to sredina.

Tinte - AK, Vallejo i S75 sve tri djeluju isto prema mom ograničenom iskustvu. Kada je riječ o nijansi, sklona sam Vallejovoj Umber. Zapravo me zanima da ih dalje koristim u kombinaciji s mat medijem. Imaju bolju vrijednost za novac od washeva.

Na sličan način, pokušala sam pomiješati vlastiti wash kombinirajući Scalecolor Artist Burnt Umber s Lahmian Medium. Bilo je prilično dobro i još jednom puno jeftinije od bilo kojeg washa.

Kada bih morala birati koji mi je wash najdraži, rekla bih Vallejo. Ali mislim da bi moja budućnost mogla biti pronalaženje pristojnog, ali ne precijenjenog mat medija i miješanje vlastitog washa. Već moram upotrijebiti medij ako želim razrijediti boju, pa bih također mogla dobiti pigment iz tinte ili kvalitetne akrilne boje.

Nastavit ću koristiti izbor ovih washeva dok se ne potroše. Ako se predomislim o nečemu, možda ću se u budućnosti vratiti na ovu temu.

Sve u ovom članku moje je mišljenje temeljeno na iskustvu isprobavanja proizvoda.

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Ana Polanšćak, 22nd January 2025

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