3d Clone Trooper Model

[Zoraida]

Youwill need a clone to paint, detail brush (small and fine tipped), general workhorse brush (larger, to hold more paint), model holder/paint stand, painting supplies. Any of these paint selections may be substituted for any similar paint, but this is my exact recipe. I use White Scar primer (GW), Black Templar contrast paint (GW), Vallejo Dead White, Word Bearers Red (GW), Apothecary White (GW), Agrax Earthshade (GW), Nuln Oil (GW), Vallejo Ivory White, Abaddon Black (GW), Storm Vermin Fur (GW), any Gunmetal, and Black Legion contrast (GW). Basing will vary depending on personal preference, but this lad needed an official Legion deluxe base to match his brothers in arms. For that base I used Vallejo Gray, GW Fang, Nuln Oil, Vallejo Neutral Grey and GW Calgar Blue. Lastly, I used AK Ultra Matte to seal it and protect the model.

This model is a Phase 1 clone trooper from the expansion of the same name, with a Phase 1 helmet from the specialist kit, but any clone trooper shall do. Before you prime, make sure you have eliminated as many flaws from the model as possible (mold lines, gaps etc.) my model has pretty rough imperfections on the shoulders, and these can be filled with a medium of your liking. I left them as is because I will have to do this for my whole army eventually and may as well make a day of it. Before we prime, ensure you shake the slag out of the rattle can for a few minutes. When priming make sure to get as little paint on the model while still getting as much coverage as possible. It is a tricky balancing act, but the resulting smooth coat is worth it.

Next, I use Black Legion on all of the bits on the model that need to be black, mostly the body glove and helmet in this case. While being as tidy as you can helps here, a few mistakes are by no means the end of the world. I often have black spill over onto parts of the clone that are not meant to be black, and as such have developed a step specifically to remedy this. I use Black Legion because it has wonderful coverage and the contrast paint lends itself well to future steps, specifically on the gloves and rubber helmet band.

For the unit markings I often look to Battlefront 2 or the Clone Wars show for reference material on where and what markings are appropriate for the subject. Here I am using Word Bearers Red, thinned down so it takes two coats but has a smoother finish. Word Bearers Red generally has poor coverage anyway, so forcing two coats is important here. Again, I try to keep it nice and tidy, but mistakes will be removed in the next step.

Here I switch out my water cup for a fresh one as we are switching to white. I use Vallejo Dead White (my favorite) to neatly line out any imperfections on the armor markings or to fill in any area not completely covered by the white primer. This tidying up step can take a bit of time as white does not often cover well over black (or dark red in this case) and I have found that a brush on primer such as from Scale 75 can also fulfill this duty well if need be.

This step is arguably the most difficult and simultaneously the most important step in my process. I use Nuln Oil on my small detail brush to shade all of the recesses on the armor, white bit, unit markings or otherwise. Slow and steady wins the race here, as black tide marks are the most noticeable on white armor, but the shading provided really allows the white highlights in the next step to really pop! If you have made any mistakes on the previous three wash steps, have no fear for I have found that hiding these small errors with battle damage (as covered later on) still allows us to have a clean final product. One must simply trust the process.

Here we essentially repeat the previous step, but with 50/50 Word Bearers Red and Ivory White paint. If you find yourself without the ideal highlight paint for your model, often times this 50/50 recipe will work perfectly! The tips from the previous step apply here too obviously, and you can come back in with the white again if you go too far on an edge such as the shoulder plate.

For the weapon I like to draw on real-world experience with military issue weapons, which are often blacked out and kind of rough looking. To achieve this I simply cover the weapon with a gunmetal metallic paint (any will do) and then once that has dried, I go over that metal with a thinned down coat of Black Templar contrast paint. This allows the metallic from the previous coat to peek through on the edges and leaves us with a fantastic result! Super simple too. Once I figured this out, I have not even been tempted to change the recipe.

The vents on the Phase 1 helmet run along the bottom of the chin piece, below the ear protection. I use my detail brush to put 4 fine black lines here and tidy up with Dead white again if necessary. The vents vary depending on phase and source material, so be sure to check your reference pictures if that matters to you!

The commlink step is completely optional, but I see it as somewhat of a signature of my style. It adds a surprising amount to the model, with a cool little holographic blue square breaking up what is usually a field of white. To that end I apply Nighthaunt Gloom to the commlink square, allowing a touch extra to pool in the middle to deepen the effect. I then mix it 50/50 with white and apply an edge highlight to the bottom two edges of the square. To finish it off, add a little dot of pure white to the opposite 90 degree corner to complete the effect!

For battle damage I simply use whatever highlight color is applicable to where I want the damage, such as large uninterrupted fields of the same color such as the legs as well as prominent edges that would likely get scuffed. These marks should be slight and intentional, and angular or pock-marked in nature. Then I put some Black Legion (or other black paint, Black Legion is just already at a good consistency) inside of those previous scratches, making sure to keep some of that original highlight color scratch visible to sell the depth effect on the damage. This effect is also furthered by placing your battle damage marks inside or on top of mistakes, lending to the illusion of depth or scorching around the damage.

Lastly, I add easy grey highlights on the black parts that require it, namely the headband and gloves. The contrast paint should have already provided some subtle highlights by its very nature and adding a little grey (Storm Vermin Fur from GW in this case) completes the look.

Basing using deluxe bases is relatively easy. I selected two colors that fit well in-universe for an army based on Coruscant, as well complimenting the mostly warm-toned nature of my army. A neutral color (like grey, tan or brown) combined with a color that contrasts your army (red for blue or similar color theory) will do nicely to complete your model! Regardless of base style (deluxe, texture, tufts etc.) this recipe can be applied to some success, contrary to what you may think. Be careful about basing your army in the same colors that make up the majority of colors on your models, as it may blend together. For example, my 41st Rangers blend in a little too well to their Kashyyyk bases thanks to their camouflage, and thus some detail seems to get lost in translation.

Thank you for reading to the end! I genuinely hope that this guide helped you in some way. I hope to aide the community more in the future with further guides and tips, as we can all improve together with some shared knowledge. If you have any questions or suggestions, feel free to reach out to me via Instagram at ArcherHobbies.

I've always been a huge Star Wars fan and I've been thinking about jumping into Star Wars Legion for awhile now. After getting the Clone Wars starter set over the holidays I started painting up my own Grand Army of the Republic. The clone troopers are just so cool, especially if you've seen the Clone Wars TV show, and luckily they're also extremely easy and quick to paint!

This was followed with an all over wash of the Apothecary White contrast paint. Make sure this doesn't pool in any weird spots. I kept an eye on them and used a spare brush to either soak up or move around any weird blobs before it got too dry.

I then went back with Corax White and tidied up a bit. I thinned it down and used it as a glaze on some of the flatter areas, like the shoulder pads, the top of the helmet, and the top of the thighs. By having the paint thinned I'm able to smooth out the area while also letting some of the Apothecary White color to show through, even on the flat areas. Make sure you leave the recesses untouched. If you need to touch up any recesses with Apothecary White you can do so now as well.

Using Black Templar I base coated all of the black areas. This took 2 - 3 coats in part since it's a contrast paint. I like to use Black Templar because it flows better, which is particularly good for painting the areas between the armor. You want to be as tidy as you can, but if you accidentally get any black on the armor just go back with some Corax White and tidy up.

Next, I highlighted the black with Dawnstone. On most models this will just be the rim across the top of the helmet, and the gloves. The leader model also has the strap on his electrobinoculars Just pick out the edges with this color. I also painted the areas on the helmet that are grey at this point, as well as the soles of the boots.

This was finished up with a more refined highlight of Grey Seer. On models where you can see the bottom of their feet I did a quick wash of Nuln Oil on the bottom of the sole and then highlighted with Grey Seer.

For the weathering on the armor I used a little piece of foam, either from a blister pack or a piece of pluck foam from a case, and dabbed it in some Stormvermin Grey. I then dabbed it a bit on some paper towel to make sure it wasn't overloaded, and then lightly dabbed it on the model in areas that make sense for wear and tear. This is mostly near the edges of armor, knees, elbows, etc. Less is more here. You can always go back and add more if you want. You can also add a little highlight of white on the bottom of some of these marks to make it seem like the light is catching the edge of the paint chip.

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