Painting

Vespid — orange carapace and ivory wings

Orange carapace and pale ivory wings make the Vespid's materials easy to distinguish. Cooler joints and a sharply edged pale rifle stay subordinate to the bright head and upper wing ridges.

◉BrushDojoOfficial guide

← Back to guides

Colours on the model

Vespid — orange carapace and ivory wings

Painting stages

All stages

Stage 1 of 5

Prepare the model

Where to paintWhole model

For this stage

Greyvallejo · 70.601

Detailed instructions · 1

Clean and prime the sculpt
Remove support marks carefully around the feelers, wing tips and claws. Clean the model as required for its material, complete any necessary curing and let it dry fully. Remove dust beneath the rifle. Apply Grey Surface Primer in thin coats from several directions. Keep the sculpt's sharp facets intact.
Expected result
Once dry, the primer covers the front, back and undersides; the facets remain sharp.
Points to watch
Do not sand the intentional faceted surfaces into smooth curves.

Read the complete guide · 5

1. Prepare the model

Clean and prime the sculpt
Where to paint: Whole model
Greyvallejo · 70.601
Remove support marks carefully around the feelers, wing tips and claws. Clean the model as required for its material, complete any necessary curing and let it dry fully. Remove dust beneath the rifle. Apply Grey Surface Primer in thin coats from several directions. Keep the sculpt's sharp facets intact.
Expected result
Once dry, the primer covers the front, back and undersides; the facets remain sharp.
Points to watch
Do not sand the intentional faceted surfaces into smooth curves.

2. Apply the base colours

Establish orange, ivory and charcoal areas
Where to paint: Orange carapace, wing supports and feet
Skrag Browncitadel · 22-40
Ushabti Bonecitadel · 22-32
Abaddon Blackcitadel · 21-25
Paint the carapace plates, head crest, wing supports and outer feet with thin coats of Skrag Brown. Paint the wing membranes and rifle casing with Ushabti Bone. Use Abaddon Black for the recessed joints, inner legs, hands, mouthparts and exposed rifle mechanism. Paint the existing eyes black as well. Paint the tail and the dark triangular rib faces inside the orange wing supports with Abaddon Black.
Expected result
All surfaces have a deliberate base colour, including the rear wing supports and lower claws.
Points to watch
Keep black inside the joint and mechanism boundaries, not across broad carapace plates.

3. Build the highlights

Build the bright orange carapace
Where to paint: Orange carapace, wing supports and feet
Skrag Browncitadel · 22-40
Troll Slayer Orangecitadel · 22-03
Fire Dragon Brightcitadel · 22-04
Yriel Yellowcitadel · 22-01
Layer Troll Slayer Orange over Skrag Brown, leaving the lower edges and recessed facets brown. Work one sculpted plane at a time. Mix in Fire Dragon Bright for smaller upper-facing areas, then add a little Yriel Yellow for the crest, shoulder corners and selected wing-support edges. Thin each mixture enough to soften the transitions without flooding the recesses.
Expected result
The upper plates are orange and bright, while lower facets retain warm shadows.
Points to watch
Do not draw extra triangular cracks or edge every facet in yellow.
Shade and highlight the wing membranes
Where to paint: Ivory wing membranes
Ushabti Bonecitadel · 22-32
Steel Legion Drabcitadel · 21-17
Screaming Skullcitadel · 22-33
White Scarcitadel · 22-57
Mix a little Steel Legion Drab into Ushabti Bone for the facets beneath the wing supports and between the broad raised folds. Keep the upper facets in Ushabti Bone. Gradually add Screaming Skull to highlight them, following the existing plane boundaries. Use a little White Scar only on a few upper ridges near the head. Repeat the same light direction on both wings.
Expected result
The membranes are pale and warm, with clean, readable folds rather than black veins.
Points to watch
Do not add translucent insect veins or tear the original wing outline.
Give the pale rifle crisp edges
Where to paint: Ivory rifle casing
Ushabti Bonecitadel · 22-32
Steel Legion Drabcitadel · 21-17
Screaming Skullcitadel · 22-33
Shade the underside of the casing with equal parts Ushabti Bone and Steel Legion Drab. Restore Ushabti Bone on the side panels, then layer Screaming Skull towards their upper edges. Keep the brightest accents short around the upper corners. Tidy the ivory-to-black boundaries with the appropriate base colour.
Expected result
The casing is smoother and more even than the wing folds, with a dark underside.
Points to watch
Do not paint the entire rifle ivory or add gold fittings.

4. Paint the details

Finish joints, mouthparts and weapon details
Where to paint: Dark joints, tail, wing ribs and weapon mechanism
Abaddon Blackcitadel · 21-25
Screaming Skullcitadel · 22-33
Eshin Greycitadel · 22-51
Dawnstonecitadel · 22-49
Mix Abaddon Black and Eshin Grey equally. Highlight the raised segments of the joints, fingers and mouthparts, leaving their grooves black. Use the same mixture on the upper faces of the rifle mechanism. Add short Dawnstone accents to a few mechanical edges. Keep the eyes dark, with one tiny Screaming Skull reflection inside each existing eye shape. Use the same greys on the tail and dark wing ribs; keep the deepest sides black.
Expected result
Dark parts are readable without competing with the orange head and pale wings.
Points to watch
Do not add new eyes, coloured spots or black paint across orange plates.

5. Finish the model

Check coverage and protect the paint
Where to paint: Orange carapace, wing supports and feet
Matt Varnishvallejo · 62.062
Gloss Varnishvallejo · 62.064
Check the back, wing undersides and spaces around the rifle for areas where primer still shows. Correct them with the same colour sequence used above. Once the paint is fully dry, apply a thin coat of Matt Varnish according to its instructions. After it dries, add a tiny amount of Gloss Varnish to the eyes only.
Expected result
All surfaces are finished; the wings and carapace stay matt and their edges remain sharp.
Points to watch
Keep the carapace matt; this sculpt has no separate scenic base.

All paints and materials (14)

Greyvallejo · 70.601

Skrag Browncitadel · 22-40

Ushabti Bonecitadel · 22-32

Abaddon Blackcitadel · 21-25

Troll Slayer Orangecitadel · 22-03

Fire Dragon Brightcitadel · 22-04

Yriel Yellowcitadel · 22-01

Matt Varnishvallejo · 62.062

Gloss Varnishvallejo · 62.064

Steel Legion Drabcitadel · 21-17

Screaming Skullcitadel · 22-33

White Scarcitadel · 22-57

Eshin Greycitadel · 22-51

Dawnstonecitadel · 22-49

Community

Comments …

Loading comments…

Painting stages

All stages

Stage 1 of 5

Prepare the model

Where to paintWhole model

For this stage

Greyvallejo · 70.601

Detailed instructions · 1

Clean and prime the sculpt
Remove support marks carefully around the feelers, wing tips and claws. Clean the model as required for its material, complete any necessary curing and let it dry fully. Remove dust beneath the rifle. Apply Grey Surface Primer in thin coats from several directions. Keep the sculpt's sharp facets intact.
Expected result
Once dry, the primer covers the front, back and undersides; the facets remain sharp.
Points to watch
Do not sand the intentional faceted surfaces into smooth curves.

Vespid — orange carapace and ivory wings

Colours on the model

Painting stages

Prepare the model

For this stage

Clean and prime the sculpt

Expected result

Points to watch

1. Prepare the model

Clean and prime the sculpt

Expected result

Points to watch

2. Apply the base colours

Establish orange, ivory and charcoal areas

Expected result

Points to watch

3. Build the highlights

Build the bright orange carapace

Expected result

Points to watch

Shade and highlight the wing membranes

Expected result

Points to watch

Give the pale rifle crisp edges

Expected result

Points to watch

4. Paint the details

Finish joints, mouthparts and weapon details

Expected result

Points to watch

5. Finish the model

Check coverage and protect the paint

Expected result

Points to watch

Comments …

Vespid — orange carapace and ivory wings

Colours on the model

Painting stages

Prepare the model

For this stage

Clean and prime the sculpt

Expected result

Points to watch

1. Prepare the model

Clean and prime the sculpt

Expected result

Points to watch

2. Apply the base colours

Establish orange, ivory and charcoal areas

Expected result

Points to watch

3. Build the highlights

Build the bright orange carapace

Expected result

Points to watch

Shade and highlight the wing membranes

Expected result

Points to watch

Give the pale rifle crisp edges

Expected result

Points to watch

4. Paint the details

Finish joints, mouthparts and weapon details

Expected result

Points to watch

5. Finish the model

Check coverage and protect the paint

Expected result

Points to watch

Comments …