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| Stormtroopers inspect one of my latest 3-D printed buildings to ensure it is up to imperial code |
So, remember the great deal I got at
Hold the Line on those 3-D printed buildings? Well, they turned out to be very easy to paint up for the tabletop, too! Originally, I was going to paint up the three smallest that I bought from Jeff G in time for this coming Sunday's game. After my friend Mike S handed me two more that fit the theme perfectly, I said what the heck? We'll get five of them ready.
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| 'I saw the rebels go this way!' These buildings will see use as desert Tatooine buildings very soon |
Fortunately, the weather in Columbus cooperated at the start of this week, being sunny and good spray priming weather. I primed all five in a Camouflage Tan acrylic spray paint that I bought at Menards. Unlike the Tatooine buildings I bought from Diabolical Terrain, these have a lot more nooks and crannies that may have been missed by the first coat. So, I decided to brush paint them a similar "Bambi Brown" craft paint. This ensured everything got a good solid base coat.
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| All of the roofs come off, some are in 2 parts like this one, others of the ones I bought are 3 piece |
Next, I dry brushed them a craft paint called "Wild Rice," which is a very light tan. I know that I did a white highlight on the Tatooine buildings, but since the Bambi brown is a little darker than the Camouflage tan spray paint, I went with a slightly darker highlight than white. I was doing all five buildings at the same time, moving from my painting desk out on the big 8'x5' gaming table. I set out a bunch of cardboard boxes and other things to set them on to dry after I painted them, too, so I needed the space.
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| This 2-story building comes in 3 parts -- bottom, upper level, and roof for upper level |
Now, it was time for the detail work. Frankly, there wasn't a lot of ornamentation or other things to paint up besides the walls on these desert buildings. The rooftop access doors, wooden adobe parts, and the one that had a wooden floor I base coated a medium brown called Autumn Brown. It received a khaki tan highlight. There was one building that had what looked like a tile floor in a square grid pattern. I decided to do a checkerboard of pale blue and yellow. I dry brushed those colors over the tan very lightly and not completely, leaving some tan showing. I am incredibly happy with how the tile turned out!
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| Obviously, these buildings will also be usable as historical Middle Eastern ones & for the desert SW |
The exposed mud brick areas I painted a lighter brown called Raw Sienna. This was probably the most time-consuming step in the entire process! There were a lot of exposed brick areas on these five models, and I kept finding new ones as I spun the building around to paint it. Or I should say, spun each level of the building around, as all of them had at least two levels and some three. All except the domed building fit together nicely on the provided tiny conical projections and holes they aligned into. It looks like the projections on the domed building (one of the ones Mike S gave me) had a bit of a printing problem and didn't fully print.
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| Mon Calamari search the interior of the bottom level - note the notches at the corners so it fits tight |
Speaking of which, I think you can see a quality difference in the ones I bought from Jeff G and the two I was given. The purchased ones have markedly less visible print lines and are crisp and a better overall quality. There are some issues with the printing of the smaller two buildings I was given, but nothing too drastic. They painted up nicely, and in the case of the tiled building, have a great design and layout.
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| On to the upper floor -- I really like the staircases and courtyards on these buildings |
The final step was to do a watered down brown vehicle wash on the surface of all of the five buildings. This was a messy step and I'm glad I seem to have gotten through it with neither any major spillage nor places where I handled wet surfaces and marred the wash. I really like the way the wash softens the dry brushing and gives a smoother tone and texture to the buildings. I think the buildings are a richer shade when seen in person than in the bright light of my photographs.
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| The Empire sent battle droids to check out another of my newest buildings - they like the view! |
I will still have to clear coat these buildings, but it is rainy and humid in Columbus, now. Hopefully, I get better "spraying weather" before the weekend when the five will be part of the tabletop for my next Star Wars skirmish using Space Weirdos rules. In previous tabletop, I've been pulling out all but the kitchen sink to fill a nice cityscape. These five buildings should go a long way towards providing a more unified look to my take on Mos Eisley. So, expect to see more photos of these buildings in the background next week!
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| 'Cool building...' says one droid to another -- the photos make the surface look brighter than it is |
So, what was on my painting desk while I was out in the other room working on these buildings? I have a group of eight 28mm armored orcs from Gripping Beast that are more than halfway done, I think. I am also working on two 3-d Printed Asian water buffalo from Miniature Building Authority. And (of course!) I have another stand of bamboo on my tabletop. Now that these five desert buildings are done, I can resume my normal pace working on the other stuff. So, stay tuned for more output soon!
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| This is probably the smallest of the ones I bought from Jeff G -- but I think they all turned out great |
MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025
- Miniatures acquired in 2025: 306
- Miniatures painted in 2025: 269
TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025
- Terrain acquired in 2025: 62
- Terrain painted in 2025: 72
SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025
- Scatter acquired in 2025: 144
- Scatter painted in 2025: 212
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| Look who's back! It's my group from Five Parsecs from Home admiring the lovely tile floors |
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| Gunny approves of the views from the rooftops, staircase and tiled 2nd story patio |
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| The smallest of the five, it was also probably the least well-printed with 'strings' here & there |
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| I think the dome on this building will help it fit in with the Tatooine vibe of mine from Diabolical |
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| Poor Sci-Fi Gatorfolk -- they have yet to make it into a game since I painted them...! |
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| No floor on the interior room -- I considered adding one of styrene plastic myself, but decided not to |
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