Star Wars Imperial Assault Painting Guide Ep.43: Dengar

[@theredstonefortress]

I did my Dengar back in March and it was the first Imperial Assault figure I did without one of your tutorials. Thank you for all the tips and tricks. Keep up the great work my friend!

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Oliver! I'll keep 'em coming :)

[@jamesforshaw7989]

I've been holding off doing that Oliver as these guides are just so good. I did finish some echo base troopers recently as my group needed them for a game. @Sorastro - outstandingwork again

[@mangasprai]

Amazing work and dedition in making all these videos for us mere humans

[@Sorastro]

Thank you so much! And you're very welcome 🤗

[@paulfrancis5704]

Sorastro, Love your work, has been over 30 years (D&D) since I painted any figures, your Imperial Assault has got me back in to it. Have a lovely Christmas and new year, and keep them coming.

[@Sorastro]

Thank you so much Paul! You too have a great Christmas :)

[@stefaanvanmieghem4311]

Great color scheme on the armour! I have been following you some time now and you have clearly developed (dare I say mastered?) a broader range of techniques during these past 3 years. From basic layering and washes to wet blending, stippling, improved colour theory and an overall attention to the small details. Very informative for a beginner like myself. Thanks a lot!

[@Sorastro]

Thanks so much Stefaan! I really appreciate that. I would certainly stop short of claiming mastery of anything, but I do continually strive to learn and try out new techniques all the time :)

[@aleckendall5101]

I dont mean to be so off topic but does anybody know of a method to get back into an instagram account? I stupidly lost the password. I would appreciate any tricks you can give me!

[@timothykenneth4925]

@Alec Kendall instablaster =)

[@aleckendall5101]

@Timothy Kenneth Thanks so much for your reply. I got to the site on google and I'm in the hacking process now. Takes a while so I will reply here later when my account password hopefully is recovered.

[@aleckendall5101]

@Timothy Kenneth it worked and I now got access to my account again. I am so happy:D Thank you so much you saved my ass !

[@brightsunlight335]

The face looks phenomenal! Actually without painting the eyes, it really looks like closed eyes and he's focussing for enemy sounds. Awesome work!

[@Sorastro]

Thank you so much! I'm glad you liked it :)

[@rooter6]

Hello! You have outdone yourself! There is one thing I'm super greatful for. You pointed out areas of highlight by marking them in red. This is sooo helpful whilst painting. Please do that more often :)

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Mateusz! I appreciate the feedback :)

[@victorsallant6127]

great work as always, and the paint scheme and color very successful

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Victor! I'm really glad you like it :)

[@darthd3615]

Wet blending on a face? Holy cow) I have just realised, that your example made me to mix my paints. And it works greate) Thanks for all the inspiration) My second mini is about to get done. Enother 10-15 years and i'll get to your level)

[@Sorastro]

+Дарт Д Thanks buddy! We’re all improving with every mini we paint :)

[@lewisbean4852]

Really wanna see what you do with the maul figure

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Lewis - me too! :)

[@john-paullaflamme1825]

Agree the Secret Weapon rust colours are the best rust I've seen. Red, Orange and Yellow for all your rusty needs. :) Very realistic, mixing other paints to be similar doesn't quite do it.

[@HabitualJoker]

Hi Sorastro, great video as usual. Do you happen to have any wet blending tips or suggestions? The technique seems to work fantastically and I think my figures would benefit from it. Do you still thin the paints quite a bit?

[@Sorastro]

Hi mate! I generally keep the paints a little thicker than usual when I'm wet blending. If you scroll to the bottom of this list you'll find some examples of my videos where I go into it in a bit more detail: sorastro.com/painting-technique-index/ :)

[@maxbrandt6]

Very nice work, I've always wondered where Dengar got his armor. I'm guessing it was discarded clone trooper armor he found during his journeys.

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Max! Interesting - I hadn't considered that :)

[@johnnycooper7019]

Dear Sorastro, Another masterpiece! Hopefully if work and she-who-must be-obeyed will allow it, I might even try to catch up. I have only managed to get as far as painting the imperial officers, so have a long way to go! I will definitely be ordering the music to encourage me, that's one Christmas pressie to me sorted! Kind Regards Johnny

[@Sorastro]

Thanks a lot Johnny! :D

[@NecroMancer84]

I really wish I could use wet blending but I live in too arid of region. I have thought about painting with a humidifier but not sure if that would help.

[@Sorastro]

Hi Chris! Have you tried using Vallejo's Glaze Medium to thin your paints with? I find it really helps extend the drying time due to the built-in retarder :)

[@NecroMancer84]

Sorastro's Painting I have but it seems like once the paint hits the model the paint is dry. I have even tried using a straight drying retarded. Maybe I'm thinning it too much? Maybe just some more practice would help.

[@rogerburdette4854]

You are awesome . could you try painting Yoda? If you have I can't find it on here. Hopefully you can find one and show how to paint it. The empire strikes back Yoda would be awesome.

[@Sorastro]

Thank you Roger! I don't think they've made a Yoda figure yet for Imperial Assault but if they ever do I'll be all over it :)

[@JamesNettum]

Secret Weapon really needs to sponsor a few videos from you. Their paints are fantastic, but they don't categorize them at all (ie which are semi-transparent vs. which are opaque, which are gloss vs. which are mat, etc). I'd love to see what you could do with their full range of paints and washes at your disposal, and I have no doubt it would be very informative for their customers.

[@Sorastro]

Thanks James! I confess I haven't tried many of their products but now I'm curious.. :)

[@labalbi]

they have good paints , yes . But why they cost almost twice when compared to Vallejo´s ?!

[@OvantheWise]

I’m pretty hard core about keeping my brushes clean but for some strange reason they always lose there point long befor I think they should I paint a lot so I expect to go threw brushes but I figured I would ask if you had any advice on how to keep my brush in a sharp point.

[@TheRunesmythe]

Do you use brush soap? While I don't, I understand (from people that do) that it can really help the bristles retain their point. Aside from that, the best way I've seen is to always twist your brush while getting paint; this tends to bring it to a nice, fine point for the purposes of applying the paint.

[@Sorastro]

Hi Graham! I agree with TheRunesmythe - I usually like to give the brush a little twist each time I unload some of the excess paint, either on the back of my hand or some paper. I also think a lot also depends on the quality of the brushes you're using to begin with; can I ask which brushes you have?

[@OvantheWise]

Sorastro's Painting I use brush soap when cleaning my brushes and I do the twist thing as well, I own a hobby store so I use citadels brushes sens they are allready in the store. I do a lot of commission painting and I only get about 3 months out of a brush before it looses its tip and about another 3 before it’s gone entirely.

[@Sorastro]

Three months? That doesn't actually sound too bad to me! But to be honest I'm not the best when it comes to brush care. I do wonder if a Windsor & Newton or Rosemary & Co brush will last longer though; might be worth trying :)

[@OvantheWise]

Sorastro's Painting I was figuring I was doing the best I could considering how much stress I put the brush under on a daily basis. But I figured I would ask just in case I was missing something.

[@Johnprestonevans74]

Great video. Are you using the zenithal highlights strictly as a guide to lay in your different tones of color? I've seen people using Zenithal as a means to shade and highlight the figure by using thin coats of paint so the priming shows through. In this video your base coat appears opaque and the zenithal highlighting is a means of identifying the areas to block in the highlight and shadow tones. I must say, I've tried the thin translucent method and was not thrilled with my results. I like having full color saturation like you appear to achieve in this video.

[@Sorastro]

Thanks a lot John! I pretty much add zenithal highlights to all my minis these days; it means you have the option of just using them as a guide, or you can let them show through the base colours, or they're just useful for making all the details pop so you can see what's going on. I think using more translucent base tones to let the zenithal highlights show through works well for some figures, colours, and textures than others; I might use that technique more for larger, organic monsters perhaps (like my Blood Rage Frost Giant) :)

[@meltedarc9317]

Hello, I am really interested in following along with you in this series however after pricing out the paint required just for the imperial troops alone is quite pricy. How do you get your paint and where do you get it from? Can you buy in bundles and save?

[@Sorastro]

Hello! I buy my paint either from my local gaming store or online. I agree it is pricey to get started. I personally think it's best to just buy a few paints at a time - just for which ever minis you happen to be working on (say, the Stormtroopers), then build your paint collection up gradually :)

[@rogerburdette4854]

You should try painting some world war 2 army figures. They would look so real .

[@billkennedy1410]

About how long does it take to paint a figure like this I real time? Thank you for the great tutorials.

[@Sorastro]

Hi Bill! Hmm that's tricky to say as it does vary quite a lot (and I tend to lose track of time when I'm in "the zone" anyway!). I'd guess for something like this, around 4 hours (if I wasn't filming) :)

[@HeroesBosses]

I imagine filming doubles the time it takes to paint a figure. You need to constantly start and stop the camera, check angles and focus, etc.

[@BreachiesWorld]

What's the equivalent for Orange Rust (Secret Weapon) and Red Rust (Secret Weapon) in Citadel or VMC?

[@Sorastro]

Hi Andrew! You can substitute the Orange Rust with Skrag Brown, and mix in some Rhinox Hide to approximate the Red Rust :)

[@BreachiesWorld]

Thanks

[@Sorastro]

No problem :)

[@samthorpe5036]

Are you going to do the Maul figure?

[@Sorastro]

I'd love to Sam! I'm just not sure when. :)

[@Mikey__R]

Hi Sorastro, is there a reason you prefer a dry palette rather than wet?

[@Sorastro]

Hi Mikey! I actually do like using a wet palette also; I just find I can keep things a bit neater and easier to follow with a dry palette which is why I favour them when shooting the videos :)

[@dannymolenaar2202]

im not to sure about the face the highlights seem to stark/light to me. but that armour though I love it and definitely going to try it. also thx for the music. are you going to do the same for your other series as I asked a few months ago :)

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Danny! Yes as mentioned in my channel update video I am planning to put the fantasy-themed music into the second album. Due to the time and costs involved in producing the album this will probably be some time early 2018 :)

[@gedgedk4929]

dear sorastro. You wouldnt put a high gloss on the armour after? Just curious.

[@Sorastro]

Hi Ged! You sure could if you wanted, but as I've essentially applied my own NMM (non-metallic-metal) highlights I didn't feel the need. I also wanted a lightly more dull finish for the armour, as that's how it appears to me in the movie :)

[@gedgedk4929]

ty for your kind reply!

[@shadowqueen1701]

Will you be painting the other Imperial Assault minis?

[@Sorastro]

+ShadowCat Hi! Yes I will; not all of them but certainly some of the more interesting ones 😀

[@shadowqueen1701]

facebook.com/photo.php?fbid=10212919712322106&set=gm.1616283548410392&type=3&ifg=1 Based off your guide still a wip.

[@shadowqueen1701]

Sorastro's Painting if you need a darker gunmetal look for gunmetal grey from the people who put it in dropper bottles it's not from army painter.

[@d.hunterphillips74]

I don't really like that sculpt but you still make it shine

[@Sorastro]

Thank you! :D

[@bigmclargehuge8237]

Its always interesting that you do the eyes last. Most tutorials Ive found talk about the "inside out" approach, where you start with the eyes and work your way out. Any particular reason you find success using the opposite approach? Also, any chance of doing a Darth Maul tutorial?

[@Sorastro]

Hi! I think the inside-out approach is a good idea; I usually paint the eyes last partly out of habit, and partly because I often use a shade which would colour the eyes orange if I painted them first :)

[@onetruehaldir9059]

I'm curious, do you have any plans to do Maul or Ahsoka, if so I can't wait to see what you do as all of the paint jobs I have seen from you have turned out amazing

[@Sorastro]

+James Keilty Hi James! Yes - I think there's a good chance Ashoka will be coming up next 😀

[@josiahmenges3952]

you need to make more videos of these there are many more expansions out now and we need to know how to paint theses other minifigures. or you could at least finish some of the characters from like jabba's realm

[@Sorastro]

Fear not Josiah - I will be doing some more IA very soon.. :)

[@josiahmenges3952]

will you reveal what the next one will be or is that a secret

[@Sorastro]

Sure - I'll be painting Ahsoka Tano next :)

[@josiahmenges3952]

do you post your videos in order from easier to harder or in the order you think is best

[@labalbi]

I dont know if someone ever asked you but how many hours did you take to paint this one ? Thanks again !

[@Sorastro]

Hi Leonardo! I think if I wasn't filming it would have taken me around four hours?

[@labalbi]

Sorastro's Painting thanks so much

[@danielthompson7717]

Do you have any plans to do Ahsoka Tano?

[@Sorastro]

+Daniel Thompson Hi Daniel! Yes - I'm painting her next actually :)

[@danielthompson7717]

Sorastro's Painting Awesome! You are the best! I have checked out some of the work you have done on Legion, you are incredible and extremely talented.

[@Sorastro]

That's very kind sir - thank you! :)

[@brianleclaire5886]

Another great figure! I like how you did the armor but I was surprised you didn't go for battle damage on his armor to add interest.

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Brian! Regarding the question of battle damage, I just didn't want to make it look too "busy" but you could of course go for it :)

[@juankulas5283]

Love love love your work, but please please please don't forget Blood Rage :-)

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Juan! Don't worry - I haven't forgotten :)

[@michaeljdauben]

This seems like such an uninteresting figure at first glance. Just white and brown. The extra work you put into the armor really makes this figure, though, and you've got me thinking how I can use those ideas and techniques on other figures!

[@Sorastro]

Thanks Michael! I often like to latch onto one feature that interests me in a figure - in this case the armour - and make it as expressive and interesting as I can :)

[@stanislasgodard9792]

to when the coruscant characters ?

[@Sorastro]

Hi Stanislas! All I know is that I'll be doing Ahsoka Tano next :)

[@stanislasgodard9792]

Sorastro's Painting I never saw the fig could you tell me in which expansion can I get it ?

[@Sorastro]

Yep - it's a stand-alone figure pack: amzn.to/2CrZsy0 :)

[@stanislasgodard9792]

Sorastro's Painting Thanks looking forward to painting her and discovering new techniques. Can't wait! ; )

[@Onionkid99]

Need someone disintegrated? Get Dengar integrated, that's what I say!

[@Sorastro]

Ha :)

[@TheRunesmythe]

"No disintegrations."

[@Onionkid99]

Aw!

[@rogerburdette4854]

Ok . That's weird they don't have a Yoda yet. Oh well um hey you could probably. Paint army figures the same way couldn't you . using citadel paints? 1/35 scale figures.

[@Sorastro]

Hi Roger - sure you could :)

[@fravraven]

Pleaseeee paint the last big monster of Blood Rage or the last 2 heroes of Descent :( too much Star Wars for its own good

[@Sorastro]

I will Rodrigo :)

[@pinchejuan93]

Why is Dengar so damn tall? Lol