ArchaOne for the Road

On my way to this year's 'Boot, I had some spare time at the airport. So I thought 'why not get some painting done?'

If you've never painted in an airport lobby, you're missing out on a tremendous experience. The constant bustle of people rushing past you is deeply invigorating. And if you start feeling bored, there's nothing like being pursued by angry security guards, determined to confiscate your spray cans, to focus the mind and keep you going.

My proudest moment was probably convincing the Ryanair staff that Archaon, who I happened to be painting, was in fact baby equipment and therefore free to transport under their baggage terms.

Lovely model, Archie, but I wouldn't say he was travel friendly. Many tiny thin wobbly parts, designed to snap off with the lightest tap. The crows and the chains dangling from Dobbin's back are the worst offenders (and none of them made it to the UK unscathed, sadly), but the wingtips are also prone to damage as they stick so far out from the rest of the model.

And the whole model itself is stuck to the base by three very small contact points, all on the thinner tail. Precarious, really, and would probably benefit from a pin up through the bottom. He's got a mark of Slaanesh, he'd probably enjoy it.

The paintjob followed the GW instructions fairly closely, although I went with blue plasma flare rather than hellfire reds. Easier to get it looking glowy, I find, probably after so much practise doing plasma weapons on the Eldar recently.

Painting Guide:

• Undercoat - Chaos Black for the model, Mournfang Brown for the base
• Dorghar's Skin - Warpfiend Grey, Nightshade blue wash, Warpfiend plus Pallid Wychflesh layers
• Dorghar's Scaly Skin and Abaddon's Armour - Eshin Grey highlights over the basecoat, light Ulthuan Grey drybrush
• Dorghar's Breasplate - Undercoat neatened up with Abaddon Black after I'd done all the glowing symbols, then 'Ardcoat finish
• Glowing Daemonic Energy/Slayer of Kings - Ahriman Blue, Teclis Blue, Temple Guard Blue and White Scar in decreasing amounts. Total pain to do, all those cracks along the back and tail took ages. 
• Red Hairy Bits - Khorne Red, Carroberg Crimson wash, Evil Suns Scarlet and Astorath Red drybrushes
• Khorne Tiger Face - Trollslayer Orange over XV88, Pallid Wychflesh and Abaddon Black stripes
• Tzeentch Vulture Head - Incubi Darkness feathers, drybrushed with a variety of blues and greens including Teclis, Temple Guard, Cabalite and Hellion Green. Beak done with Steel Legion Drab, Zamesi Desert and White Scar teeth
• Friendly Nurgle Head - Deathworld Forest green, Agrax Earthshade wash. Nurgling Green layers and a Hiveworld Ash drybrush. Wazdakka Red in the torn skin parts, then BftBG after varnishing later. Cabalite Green lips, Zamesi Desert with Seraphim Sepia wash teeth, Ushabti Bone antlers
• Golden Armour - My standard recipie now, Balthazar with Agrax Gloss wash, Auric Armour highlights and Sigmarite drybrush, maybe a little Stormhost Silver here and there to finish
• Cloak and Tassle Hat - Mephiston Red, Nuln Oil, highlights up through Wild Rider to Trollslayer Orange
• Brass Bits - Warplock Bronze, Agrax Earthshade gloss, Brass Scorpion, Runelord Brass
• Silver Buckles - Ironbreaker, Nuln Oil, Runefang Silver finish
• Straps and Belts - Rhinox Hide, Nuln Oil, Skrag Brown and Tau Light Ochre layers
• Teeth, Fangs, etc - Steel Legion Drab, Agrax, Ushabti Bone, Pallid Wychflesh
• Embedded Skulls - XV88, Agrax, Ushabti Bone, White Scar highlights
• Stone Wall Ruins - Steel Legion drybrush over the base, then Agrax wash, Kharak Stone and Pallid Wychflesh drybrushes to finish. Vines done with Deathworld Forest and Underhive Ash drybrush, smashed pots done in the metal colours above
• Lava Cracks - Khorne Red layered with various oranges, reds and yellows in messy stripes, then Rhinox Hide and Abaddon Black drybrushed round the edges. The rest of the base was finished with Agrax wash and Kharak Stone drybrushing. 

Painting him was easiest done in segments, so the cloak, the rider, the three heads and the base were all done separately. This also because there was no way I could glue him together and then get him in my hand luggage without snapping him to bits again, of course.

There was a tempting moment where, having brought him to the 'Boot, I thought 'maybe I should redo my list? Actually field this crazy ringer?' It's doable for 1000 points, if only just. Something like Archaon, two units of Marauder Horsemen and then something else for 100 (probably more Horsemen, I like them). We did actually take him out for a spin in a brief tutorial battle, a three-way between some of the Nighthaunts and some of the Ironjaws.

This went very much as you might expect, i.e. Archaon murdered the first few units to get anywhere near him, all Brutes as it happened, then vanished under the weight of numbers. And the Mourngul,

He also got to have a quick hero-vs-hero battle, fighting against The Glottkin. He triumphed! Under the command of General Yalfrezi Minimus, the terrible power of his sword won him through, despite taking rather a lot of wounds from the fat triplets before they closed for combat. Obviously, this wasn't under my command, I wasn't in a winning mood this year. General Yalfrezi Minimus was so pleased at the outcome, however, I couldn't really mind.

Time for my usual post-'Boot General's analysis, next. Once I feel able to relive those terrible battles, at least, and have come to terms with my entirely scoreless performance. Sigh. At least Archaon turned out nice.