The Showcase - "Steel Viper Warhawk (Masakari) by Mike DuVal"

From www.camospecs.com - Gamma Galaxy: Striking Serpent Galaxy In the days before the Steel Vipers occupied the Inner Sphere, Gamma painted it's machines a gun metal blue-grey with a Steel Viper snake skin covering many of the surfaces. Once the invasion was underway, the warriors of Gamma Galaxy changed their scheme to use the serpents of Terra. These schemes doubly serve as camouflage and various species are used to appropriately match the terrain. Out of tradition, the Galaxy Commander always uses the original Steel Viper Gamma scheme. Warriors are not allowed to display the Gamma insignia until their first kill. Some members of Gamma use the pattern of the Diamondback Rattlesnake for desert camouflage.

I can remember when Mike (also known as Chewie) DuVal first show me this mini in an e-mail and I was just floored on how great this mini looked. Not only was the paint scheme totally off the charts, but it was also painted on one of my favorite clanner minis the Warhawk! When coming up with the idea of doing a "Showcase" of other people's minis, I knew this mini had to be the first one.

Mike, I want to thank you for volunteering to allow me to post up your mini as the first one for "The Showcase".

MD - No prob man... it's a cool idea. Let me know if you need anything else.

First off, tell me what inspired you to come up with this scheme?

MD - I was a zoology major in college, and have always had an interest in herpetology (that's the study of reptiles, you perverts :) ). I'm a firm believer that nature really does provide the best camouflage, and a lot of other interesting coloration. I draw a lot of my inspiration from schemes found in nature. This is one I had wanted to attempt for a while, and to then back it up with schemes based on other snake species as well. When I came across the CSV Gamma Galaxy insignia (a giant coiled snake attacking a Summoner), it seemed like a perfect match.

It must have taken forever to finish such a complex paint job. How long did it take to paint it up? Did you do it in a single session?

MD - I'd say it took about 10-12 hours. In order to make the diamondback pattern really work, I had to go over a lot of detail areas across the top and back of the mini which slowed down the work. I also did a lot of test coloring to get the scales balanced. There are at least 8 different shades of brown paint used, and that's just the individual paints (not including any blending, washes, and such). As for a single session, definitely a "no". While the scales were fun to do, it would have been an awful lot of eyestrain to do them all at once. I'd say the scales were done in a number of 20-30 minute sittings, depending on what stage they were at.

For the "scales", it appears that each one is painted individually...is that correct?

MD - Yup. Each scale is made up of a border, a base color, one or two highlight colors, and a little bit of blending.

Let's start with some basics...did you prime the mini white or black before you started painting?

MD - The mini was primed white before I started. White primer really makes the colors show well, and I wanted the browns to be distinguishable from one another.

A lot of folks would probably like to know what brand of paints did you use to paint this mini up.

MD - For the most part I used several shades of the Games Workshop browns. But I also included some Reaper paints as well. The PPCs were done using Games Workshop shades of blue, while the rest of the metallics and highlights were done using Reaper paints.

I noticed that you finished the base of the mini - I've seen lots of minis out there have incomplete and/or missing base work...how do you feel about this?

MD - Finished bases really add character to a mini, and instill a feeling of action to what is a static piece. It conveys what the mini is doing, and where it is. This may sound clichéd, but a nicely done base can really make the miniature come alive. In this particular instance, I wanted to reinforce the fluff that I had written for the mini about the unit using the snake skins as a form of camouflage. Here, one can see how the diamondback pattern blends in to a desert or rocky landscape. Of course, when matching your base to your camouflage, the trick is to not make it blend too well or else you lose some definition of the mini.

Permit me to ask a simple question - did you clearcoat/dullcoat the mini after you finished it off?

MD - I tend to use multiple matte coats at different stages. The first dullcoat is applied once I finish the actual paintjob. The second is applied after decals, and the third is applied after the final base work. This first coat protects the mini for the later stages where it may be handled a lot (while positioning decals, flocking and such). It also keeps any decal setting solution from seeping into the paint and causing problems. Sometimes I'll get by with 2 coats (the first, and then a final after decals and base work), but on a mini that would see as much use as a Warhawk I try to use 3.

The photos are really nice and sharp. What kind of camera do you use? Any photo editing afterwards?

MD - I have a Sony Cybershot 3.3mp camera that's about 3 years old at this point. I love it, and I've never had any problems with it. Minor photo editing was done, such as cropping and getting the proper light balance.

Any plans for more minis in this same scheme? Maybe to round out the star?

MD - Two are already up on www.camospecs.com. The second was a Battle Cobra patterned after an Emerald Tree Boa, and the third was a Crossbow patterned after a Coral Snake. Both turned out very nice, but I still love the Warhawk the most. At some point I will finish up the star, but probably not in the immediate future.

Mike, is this mini for the display case only or will you risk damaging it in regular game play?

MD - The Warhawk has already seen action on a few occasions, and has a number of kills to its credit. All of my minis are meant for use, though I've got to admit that I'm more careful handling some paintjobs over others. In my opinion, high quality paintjobs belong on the gaming table so that others can see them. It brings people to the table, promotes CBT, and helps recruit new players.

One final question for the readers - any "special" techniques and/or advice that you can offer up to someone who wants to attempt this scheme?

MD - Do your research. Before I started, I searched for several pictures that could help me get the patterns and colors right, as well as helping with the overall shape. If you can use these as a guide, it will really help your planning. Probably the most useful thing I did was to create a color chart for the numerous browns I wanted to use. Some colors dry differently than they look in the pot. Get a nice big sheet of paper, and paint a swatch of each so that you can line up what you want to use and where before you start the actual painting. Then paint up a few sample scales to make sure you like the color combinations. When working on small details, thin your paints! Not only do they go on smoother and blend well, but they're also easier to cover if you make a mistake. If you don't want to use a brush for outlining the scales, use a Micron pen. The .005 is a perfect size for most of the work you'll do, and you'll probably be painting over most of it anyways. When you're doing a complex scale pattern, switch up your areas frequently. Not only will this help with fatigue, but it also prevents you from getting in a monotonous painting pattern which may result in the scales looking too uniform. Good luck and have fun!