At Gen Con, we showed off a couple of very cool Privateer Exclusive models: the Druid Gone Wilder and the Bombardier Bombshell. Though they were only on sale during the convention, I wanted to talk about my experience painting these models.

I think it’s safe to say I had a ton of fun working on these ladies! I have always loved painting people, especially faces, because I get to breathe life into a piece that is often unique. After having painted so many beasts, heavily armored people, and robots, it was a nice change of pace to get these ladies on my table.

Most of the time we have pretty strict guidelines to follow while painting minis. Everything has to jibe with what is already painted for a given faction. However, we were given a little more wiggle room to put our own personal touches on the Druid Gone Wilder and the Bombardier Bombshell models.

The Druid Gone Wilder’s dress is a typical Circle of Orboros green, but from there I was able to paint with a little more freedom. The artwork shows her as blonde or possibly light brunette. I ran with the idea that she was blonde and made her a really fair blonde with a rosy skin tone. I also added a little bit of makeup by adding a flush to her cheeks and a deep pink for her lips.

The Bombardier was my first Khador piece for Privateer Press. I have painted Skorne, so I found Khador red only a slight departure from Skorne red. I painted the suit of armor like I would a warjack. When painting Khador red you want to exaggerate the shadows and highlights on the model because the last step is applying red ink to the entire red surface. This keeps the richness of the red and helps smooth out transitions.

I painted the armor without the “bombshell” inside. She was a separate piece that was glued in at the end. I made sure I could go wild with painting her before I did anything too crazy and was told I had a lot of freedom. I wanted to convey that she is one bad chick while also maintaining a pin-up look. I was inspired by the Seattle girl look, which typically includes dark hair and tattoos. I gave her black and red tattoos on both arms and a Khador anvil on her tummy. The sleeve she is sporting is just a design, but I did paint a “12” in for Gen Con 2012. The tattoo on the other arm is a chevron armband. I painted the tattoos using Red Ink and Armor Wash. I mixed up Midlund Flesh with a lot of mixing medium and glazed it over the tattoos so they weren’t too stark.

I also added some freckles to her cheeks, giving her a very different look. It’s amazing how a small detail like freckles can change the whole piece. I also gave her dark lined eyes, deep red lips, and blush on her cheeks. Just because she’s encased in a suit of armor doesn’t mean she can’t be pretty!

I had a lot of fun painting these ladies, and I hope you guys enjoyed seeing them. I can’t wait to see what we do for next year!