Painting Progress - Dreadnought-Robot

THE HOCHMEISTER GETS A LICK OF PAINT

For the past week I have been exclusively painting the Hochmeister-class Dreadnought-Robot, the immense release for the Prussian Empire. As seen in my previous post unboxing the Robot, and another discussing its merits in the game, the Hochmeister is a centrepiece for the fleet, larger than almost any other model in the range and deserving of special attention.

Painting the model has been something of a trial, given its complexity and size. Large areas of flat armour plating give way to detailed pistons and engines, which are in turn covered over by equally detailed arms and weaponry. Handling the model without touching an area just painted has forced me to paint section by section, which in a way defeats the object of assembling the model before painting!

The majority of the model is dominated by grey armour plating, covering over the intricate pistons and gears which were heavily weathered and rusted to give the model a spot colour. Aged brass was used for the Tesla-weaponry, like the rest of the Prussian fleet, while elements of the engine on the back were painted with reddish metallics, adding another colour and using one of my favourite Citadel paints, Brass Scorpion. Rust and Sturginium runoff would add more detail to the armour plating, even if no self-respecting Prussian General would ever march to war in such a ramshackle monstrosity!

The colour for the blade was initially influenced by the boxart, which is glowing blue, combined with my own choice of a turquoise for Tesla-weaponry in my Prussian fleet. Throwing bright blue into a fleet that featured none would look odd, so I needed to tie it into the rest of the fleet while also looking unique, something special. The turquoise took a lot of work, and ultimately I was not happy and settled on more brass, tinged with Sturginium runoff and some attempted crackles of electricity. The result does not pop like a blue sword would, but looks more grounded in reality.

The ocean was painted in my usual manner, and as with other models, I found this to be one of the most enjoyable elements of the model to paint. I love the contrast between the highly controlled areas of metallics, rust and grey armour with the wild ocean, and think the colour it adds to the model is absolutely integral to the final result. Having not painted the Land-base for the Hochmeister yet, I am interested to see the difference in the final appearance.

I did not want to paint the model in too many pieces, as initial construction had proven troublesome with the weight of the arms and the need to line them up to get the best pose. Despite the lessons learned last year with the Chinese Dragon-Robot, I resolved to paint the model in as few pieces as possible, even though this meant certain detail would be obscured. I made the decision to fix the arms in place as I think it looks a lot better than the Donnersturm Maces, but left the option open for different Generators/Turrets on the shoulders and the ability to walk on Land or in the Sea. Not having the model attached to anything below the knee would prove annoying during, but I resolved the handle the model by the bottom of the legs and the head, which would be painted last.

Ultimately I am happy with the result. It does not photograph very well due to its immense size, and looks better from certain angles. Looking over these pictures and having taken a break from painting, I am happy with the quality of the paint on the model but feel it needs just one more thing to make it pop - another spot colour, perhaps RED, somewhere on the chestplate. I am thinking that a cross of some form. My decals selection is a little lacking at the moment, so I will be poking my Flames of War-playing friends to see if they have anything appropriate.

So there we are! Another huge model finished for Dystopian Wars after a string of large Russian vessels, This was a serious challenge, and took a lot longer than I am used to, especially for a Dystopian Wars model. My next project will have to be some new units for Dropzone Commander, ready for a tournament at the end of the month, and some Infinity for an Escalation League I have signed on to. As for Dystopian Wars... well, it might be time (eventually) for some gap-filling and smaller projects across my varied fleets.

Thanks for reading,

George