Deepwood Scouts (I)

After having painted all the cavalry and most of the infantry, it was the turn of the Scouts.

I typically field two units of 8 Deepwood Scouts but they can be used as well as Waywatchers.

These miniatures are lovely and they were a joy to paint - so full of details and small interesting things. Not like the modern ones that are a bit baroque but actually carrying useful stuff. The old ones always have stuff like a bag, a pair of knives, some rope, etc.

The only problem is that these come out of a not so clean STL image and as a result they came out a tad tiny (in some cases a whole head smaller than other more modern figures). And also quite fragile - you can easily spot a few repairs here and there.

Archers (III)

 Here I show the second block of Guards, not much to say for these guys as they were painted exactly in the same way at the same time as the others.

Archers (II)

After painting the Sisters of the Thorn I decided to tackle the only big block of Infantry that I have, that is, the Glade Guard!

It is interesting to mention that the very first model that I painted as a test was a Glade Guard. And after doing that I only painted cavalry models for quite a while so this was a very welcomed change.

I have two units of 11 including a full command group. Here I show the first block. I have to admit that these took quite a shameful amount of paint despite the mediocre results. I blame it to my inability to paint bright shiny things. Still, getting better elf after elf!

Updated painting recipe

Since I painted the first test model I have improved a little bit my painting recipe to make it faster. At the beginning it took me easily almost 4h for every model because (1) I am a slow painter and (2) not used to paint bright colours so I needed to redo many of them with multiple layers. I like to think I got a bit better at it so now it takes me on average 2h per model, slightly longer for champions, always below 3h even for cavalry - which is good for me!

The colours and steps are almost the same as the ones show in the test model, but slightly updated.

skin

greens

leather, wood and golds

I almost forgot about these two

used for metals

I usually paint it in the same order, base colors, clean it up, shadows, highlights, details and lastly glazes.

Base colors

1. skin goes first: thin layer of Beige red
2. paint base color of hair: dark brown, dark yellow, orange, grey
3. cover all areas of darker green with flat green (!! this is a change, it looks much better with flat green than with goblin green as I used before)
4. cover all areas of lighter green with fall green from Scalecolor (SC-48)
5. paint boots and wood with charred brown
6. paint leather with flat brown
7. if lots of leather / wood and so on in the same miniature, change a bit using chocolate brown as well 
8. paint all golden areas with Bloodstone from P3
9. paint all metals with either German Grey or Night Blue (depending on the shade I want, black/grey or blue)
10. if there are rocks use german grey as base
11. if there are animals on the base use enchanted blue as base

Clean all of this up - make sure all base colors are clean as some areas will remain "as is" at the end

Shadows

1. glaze Charred Brown on top of the skin focusing on face and chest, these are elves, not dwarves, so no need to have very strong deep shadows
2. glaze prussian blue on every light green area, focusing on deepest areas
3. glaze hexed lichen on every dark green area, focusing on deepest areas
4. if the miniature has a lot of foliage (like the Scouts) use a thinned down version of Coelia Greenshade to cover all foliage and make sure the areas in between leaves are dark green
5. add a thin line of pure charred brown for darkest shadows on the golden areas

Highlights

1. for the skin
1. paint most of it with beige red
2. paint the eyes with ivory and a dot of black
3. highlights go with pale flesh (the skin is now done!)
2. highlight the hair with a lighter version of the base colour (avoid drybrush if possible)
3. for the leather
1. highlight the leather with charred brown + beige red and then for final light a bit of ivory or bone white to the mix
2. in general, highlight all leather by mixing a bit of beige brown then bone white to the base colour
4. for the wood
1. highlight wood with charred brown + beige brown and bone white for final light.
2. wash all wood with a thinned down version of flat green to give it a green tint
5. for the goldens
1. mix Bloodstone with Parasite brown and cover most of it leaving the shadow and another layer of the previous colour
2. then use pure Parasite brown and do the same
3. then add ice yellow to the mix and do the same
4. lastly, use pure ivory for a few dots of light
6. for the dark greens
1. use flat green for most of it leaving the deepest areas with the lila tint
2. use lime green for highlights
3. use ice yellow for drawing patterns and some extreme lights (this last light is only for characters)
7. for the light greens
1. use fall green SC-48 and cover most of it
2. mix SC-48 with bone white for some highlights
8. for the metals
1. use neutral grey for first light
2. then cover everything except a thin layer with wolf grey
3. repeat with ivory (optional, depending on side of blade)
4. last lights with pure arctic white
5. if the metal is blue, do the same but with night blue and adding more and more ivory
9. for the rocks, if any
1. use neutral grey for highlights
2. use wolf grey for final highlights
3. wash the lower part of it with flat green to give a green tint
10. if animals or decoration (e.g. standard) done with enchanted blue
1. mix a bit of ivory for a couple of highlights
2. the eyes can go with ice yellow or ivory

Glazes

1. Glaze metals with flat green if needed

And now, finally, the painted models of today!

Sisters of the Thorn

Here I am showing five Sisters of the Thorn that were painted a couple of months ago!

Sadly, the are quite brittle and fragile and have broken already multiple times - I have lost count of how many times I have fixed them. I fear using them in battle and I believe I will need to replace them at some point with the "real" ones in plastic or some other figures that are more sturdy in resin.

Still, the miniatures are lovely and I fear my paint scheme did not work so well on them.

Project Wood Elves: Best painted award!

I am really glad to report that in the last Tournament that I participated the Army got the "Best painted" award!

It is a great feeling to see all the effort being rewarded, especially after the last sprint in which I painted so much in the last few weeks! There were a few other armies that were very nice looking, in particular I liked a Dwarf Army and a Cathay one - which was incredible well painted but not finished so it could not compete, otherwise it would have won for sure! There was an even better painted army, from the organizer, but he excluded himself from the competition.

In any case, here is the trophy! I also got a case of AK Interactive paints to add to my collection on top of it.

As for the results... well, I lost ALL my matches and it clearly shows that a) have not played a lot this year b) first time playing a list that looks cool is risky in competitive environments and c) don't really know how to play with frenzy and coordinate those with a Dragon. Still, the weekend was super fun and I came back home with something and wishing I would have more time for more tournaments. If you are curious, you can see all results here.

To make it even more special, and this was not planned, this Trophy is a render of the old logo of the "Atalaya Vigía" club that I designed many moons ago. The sculptor and organizer of the tournament didn't know that and he was happy to learn about it! Here is the original image, drawn with pen and paper, then inked by hand and then digitalized and colored in photoshop back in 2018:

Project Wood Elves: Painting Spree Update (III)

Here it is the final update before the Tournament. I literally just finished painting them. Some of the bases were still drying while I was taking the pictures... I knew it was going to be tight, but I am super happy to say that I managed to make it!

Here is the final check

• 1 Glade Lord on Forest Dragon ✅ 
• 1 Glade Lord on Great Stag ✅
• 1 Spellsinger on Elven Steed ✅
• 7 Wild Riders ✅
• 7 Wild Riders with Standard Bearer ✅
• 8 Glade Riders ✅
• 8 Glade Riders ✅
• 1 Wood Elf Beast Pack with 1 Deepwood Hound ✅
• 1 Wood Elf Beast Pack with 1 Deepwood Hound ✅
• 8 Deepwood Scouts ✅
• 8 Deepwood Scouts ✅

On top of that:

• 1 Baggage Train ✅
• 4 Objective Markers ✅

The Army list I will be using in the Tournament is this one:

500 - Glade Lord, Aspect of the Cat, Forest Dragon, Dragon Slaying Sword, Talisman Of Protection

330 - Glade Lord, Moonfire Shot, Shield, A Befuddlement of Mischiefs, Wild Rider Kindred, General, Great Stag, Spear of Twilight, Orion's Favour

134 - Spellsinger, Elven Steed, Wizard Level 1, Battle Magic, Oaken Stave

158 - 8 Glade Riders, Trueflight Arrows, Reserve Move, Glade Knight

158 - 8 Glade Riders, Trueflight Arrows, Reserve Move, Glade Knight

189 - 7 Wild Riders, Shield

253 - 7 Wild Riders, Shield, Wild Hunter, Standard Bearer, Totem Of Wrath

19 - 2 Wood Elf Beast Packs 

  • 1x Beast Keeper 

  • 1x Deepwood Hound

19 - 2 Wood Elf Beast Packs 

  • 1x Beast Keeper 

  • 1x Deepwood Hound

120 - 8 Deepwood Scouts, Arcane Bodkins

120 - 8 Deepwood Scouts, Arcane Bodkins

You can find all info about the Tournament in New Recruit

And of course, this time, some pictures of all the painted units!

Now, taking advantage of this, if I look at the 2026 objectives, one of that was to paint all Wood Elves save for the monsters... well, consider that done!

The only thing left to paint in the Wood Elf Army is:

• Treeman
• 3 Treekin
• 2 Eagles
• 2 Deepwood Hounds
• 1 Wizard on foot
• 1 Battle Standard Bearer

My idea is to take a break now, and come back to finish painting the 6 vehicles left from Legions Imperialis so I can cross out all 2026 objectives, and then tackle the remaining Wood Elves. But of course, nothing is so easy, while painting these I decided to get a unit of Hawks, Wardancers and Wildwood Rangers.... but they were not included in the original goal so...

Project Wood Elves: Painting Spree Update (II)

Hopefully this is the last update before the family picture next week.

I have now painted everything I already owned that I need for the Tournament. Just waiting for 7 Wild Riders to arrive home so I can build and paint them. I just had one day delay from my original plan as the Dragon took one extra day to paint, other than that, it is on track...

• 1 Glade Lord on Forest Dragon ✅ 
• 1 Glade Lord on Great Stag ✅
• 1 Spellsinger on Elven Steed ✅
• 7 Wild Riders ❌
• 7 Wild Riders with Standard Bearer ✅
• 8 Glade Riders ✅
• 8 Glade Riders ✅
• 1 Wood Elf Beast Pack with 1 Deepwood Hound ✅
• 1 Wood Elf Beast Pack with 1 Deepwood Hound ✅
• 8 Deepwood Scouts ✅
• 8 Deepwood Scouts ✅

On top of that:

• 1 Baggage Train ✅
• 4 Objective Markers ✅

Project Wood Elves: Painting Spree Update (I)

What's this? A second post in the same week? And without pictures? Yes, just to keep track of what have I painted so far and what is still missing...

Compared to last update you will see that I have been painting like crazy!

I have cheated a little bit because I have not painted Beast Keepers, I will just use Glade Guard on foot.
What's pending? The Dragon, Great Stag, markers and one unit! The main problem are the additional Wild Riders. Unfortunately, I do not even own them at the moment! I have tried to buy/acquire them somehow but as I want to have the old Kurnous models I could not find them at reasonable prices, so I am a bit stuck at the moment.

I have reached out to a couple of colleagues and they might be able to help! Let's see...

• 1 Glade Lord on Forest Dragon ❌
• 1 Glade Lord on Great Stag ❌
• 1 Spellsinger on Elven Steed ✅
• 7 Wild Riders ❌
• 7 Wild Riders with Standard Bearer ✅
• 8 Glade Riders ✅
• 8 Glade Riders ✅
• 1 Wood Elf Beast Pack with 1 Deepwood Hound ✅
• 1 Wood Elf Beast Pack with 1 Deepwood Hound ✅
• 8 Deepwood Scouts ✅
• 8 Deepwood Scouts ✅

On top of that:

• 1 Baggage Train ❌
• 4 Objective Markers ❌

The plan that I have until May 22nd when I leave for the Tournament is...

• 8-9: Great Stag
• 10-13: Dragon
• 14: Baggage Train + Objectives
• 15-16: I am off town so I can't paint
• 17-21: remaining 7 Wild Riders if I can get my pawns on them

Very very tight, let's see if I make it!

Project Wood Elves: Tournament preparation!

The blog seems to be abandoned, but it is not! It has just been badly neglected...

I started the year with a very strong resolution of finding the time to paint and I have painted pretty much every other day of the week for the last 2-3 months with the goal of painting the whole Wood Elves Army. So, despite the fact that I did not post I was chipping away at the pile of opportunity. I have just been lazy in taking pictures but I will try to show everything in the upcoming weeks.

I realized I was painting at a painfully slow pace so I decided to sign up for a (fully painted) Tournament as a means to motivate myself. I had several opportunities but could not really make it work until a few days ago when I finally signed up for the GT Atalaya Vigía Mayo 2026 (see here in New Recruit).

It is a Team Tournament and we will play five games across two days. As of today I have no clue who my teammates would be but I have decided on the following list!

Proyectos para 2026

Revisión anual

Bueno pues este año ha sido el peor año en cuanto a cantidad de miniaturas pintadas desde que yo recuerde, exceptuando el pequeño paron que tuve de 2009 a 2011. ¡He pintado tan sólo 22 miniaturas!

Desde que empecé el blog en 2014 he pintado todos los años mas de 40 incluso varios años más de 100.

Pero este año ha sido un completo desastre. Sin pretender poner excusas, este año he tenido muchas complicaciones a nivel personal y una mudanza que me han obligado a estar alejado de los pinceles durante varios meses.

Al final el total de minis pintadas son 22 y se reducen a un puñado de Titanes de Legions Imperialis y un puñado de Elfos Silvanos. Termino este 2025 muy decepcionado con lo pintado y con pocas energías así que espero recuperarme en 2026 y retomar el hobby con ganas.

Los objetivos del año eran bastante modestos:

1. Pintar los Titanes de Legions Imperalis
2. Pintar vehículos de Legions Imperialis
3. Pintar todos los Kill Team

En total suponían 43 miniaturas y pretendía hacer un stretch goal con The Walking Dead que compré de forma impulsiva a finales de 204. Obviamente prácticamente nada de lo listado anteriormente ha sido pintado, tan sólo el punto 1.

Otro de los motivos principales de este fallo ha sido que a finales de 2024 y principios de 2025 me enganché mucho a The Old World y compré un ejército Silvano entero, pese a que me había prometido no comprar otro ejército en 28mm.... y claro, tras años sin comprar miniaturas y manteniendo la montaña totalmente bajo control en 2024 y 2025 se ha disparado y vuelvo a tener más de 100 miniaturas acumuladas. Siendo que en 2021 y 2022 tenía menos de 10 sin pintar. Ese es el motivo por el cual he decidido no comprarme el nuevo Warhammer Quest, hasta que la montaña se vuelva a reducir a niveles manejables. Al menos coleccionar el Ejército Silvano ha sido (y es) un proyecto que me ilusiona mucho y con el que he disfrutado enormemente jugándolo.

Por el lado bueno está que he jugado muchísimo al menos hasta Abril, donde prácticamente llegué a jugar una vez a la semana. Desgraciadamente, debido a la mudanza y otros temas, desde Mayo no he jugado a nada, lo que tampoco ha contribuido a mis ganas por pintar y en general disfrutar del hobby.

Objetivos 2026

Debido a la baja motivación que tengo, quiero plantearme algún objetivo que pueda alcanzar para retomar energías

1. Pintar vehículos de Legions Imperialis
2. Pintar todo el ejército Silvano salvo monstruos

Eso supondría un total de 56 miniaturas, que son más del doble de las pintadas este año, pero parece posible.

Me encantaría alcanzar algunos de los stretch goals como pintar los monstruos silvanos (Dragón, Águilas, Hombres Árbol) o las figuras de The Walking Dead o el busto que tengo pendiente desde 2023... pero considero que es demasiado ambicioso.

Mi objetivo principal es reducir la montaña y volver a tener un número razonable de miniaturas pendientes. Si consiguiera pintar los Silvanos y las minis de The Walking Dead la montaña se quedaría en 50.

Montaña de pintado

Montaña de pintado

La gráfica en 2025 indica realmente lo sucedido. La montaña se dispara y lo pintado cae en picado.

He pintado muy poco desde 2022 y lo comprado se acumula. La decisión de comprar el nuevo Kill Team pensando que iba a jugar (ni me he leído las reglas ni he jugado) sumada a la decisión de comprar el Ejército Silvano ha disparado la montaña.

Debo volver a tomarme en serio lo de si quiero empezar nuevos proyectos debo cerrar los proyectos en marcha y pintar más de lo comprado. 

Lista pendiente de pintado

Colección Héroes y Villanos Señor de los Anillos (2)

• Balrog
• Nazgul en bestia alada

30K Hijos de Horus (5)

• Land Raider Spartan ** lo cuento como una miniatura
• Legion Falchion Super Heavy Tank ** lo cuento como una miniatura
• Leviathan Dreadnought
• Cerastus Knight ** lo cuento como una miniatura
• Rhino

Epic 30K Hijos de Horus (6)

• Land Raider Proteus (2)
• Land Raider Spartan (3)
• Storm Eagle

Miniaturas Sueltas (3)

• Sumothay en 54mm
• Nyarlathotep
• Azrakh the Annihilator

The Walking Dead (24)

• 8 Zombies
• 16 Supervivientes

Kill Team Mechanicum (14)

Kill Team Aquilons (11)

Kill Team Krieg (10)

The Old World Silvanos (51)

• 1 Lord on Dragon
• 1 Lord on Great Stag
• 1 Wizard on foot
• 1 Battle Standard Bearer
• 20 Glade Guard
• 16 Deepwood Scouts
• 5 Sisters of the Thorn
• 3 Tree Kin
• 1 Treeman
• 2 Giant Eagles

Posibles futuros proyectos

Además de los objetivos mencionados, mantengo una lista de posibles proyectos, por si saco tiempo:

• añadir personalidad a las minis de The Walking Dead, compré hojas, botellas y otros pequeños elementos de resina para poner en las peanas pero nunca tuve tiempo de hacerlo. Espero poder hacer esto a la vez que pinto la nueva remesa.
• comprar y pintar algún Primarca mas (que era el objetivo original de este blog)
• pintar cada uno de los (nuevos) Grandes Demonios del Caos
• revisar mi ejército de Caballeros Grises y adaptarlo a las reglas actuales, seguramente para OPR (requiere rebasear todos los marines, además están en peanas con césped y tierra y les quedaría mejor alguna pintura técnica texturizada)
• darle un repaso al ejército de Culto Genestealer añadiendo algo de apoyo pesado y vehículos, repintando alguna miniatura y añadiendo algún Tiránido más como aliado.

My Best Figure of 2025

This year has been a disaster in terms of miniatures painted, in fact, I think I played more games than miniatures I painted!! Which is good in terms of gaming, but really bad for the hobby!

Honestly speaking, there is not much to choose. I have a handful of Wood Elves and some Titans from my Legions Imperialis Army therefore the choice was quite obvious... the Warlord Titan I painted back in March!

Wild Riders (I)

I can't believe it but the last post was in August!

To be fair, those miniatures were painted a bit earlier so in reality I have not painted miniatures since early July... lots of things happened in my personal life that kept me away from the hobby. All my belongings were in boxes as I moved and it was a very stressful time... Therefore, I am quite happy that I finally was able to open up boxes and picking up brushes again just before the end of the year!

I have not played a lot with these Wild Riders but they are the quintessential wood elf, or glass cannon, they pack a punch but they wear no armour whatsoever, have frenzy and very difficult to play. But if you play your cards well they can win you a game!

I have added a Great Stag to my Army that I hope to paint in 2026 to go with these guys.