Skeletal robot legions are a gift for painters who want a large army finished quickly. Most of the model is metal, which takes beautifully to drybrushing and washes, and a few spots of bright colour do the rest. Here's an easy, repeatable method that works for warriors, characters and vehicles alike.
Choose your look first
Before you start, decide what kind of metal you want. The choice drives your primer and wash:
- Classic silver with green glow: black primer, silver drybrush, black or dark-blue wash.
- Ancient brass or gold: black or brown primer, brass drybrush, brown wash.
- Weathered, rusty dynasty: silver base, brown and orange washes in recesses, plus rust pigments.
- Coloured armour panels: metal skeleton with flat carapace plates painted red, white, blue or black.
Pick one metal and one "glow" colour, and keep them consistent across the army so it reads as a unified force.
Step 1: Prime black
A black primer gives you deep shadows for free, which is exactly what a menacing robot wants. Spray in short bursts from 20–30 cm and turn the model so you reach under arms and weapons. Assemble glowing weapon parts separately if you can; it makes the glow step much easier.
Step 2: Heavy silver drybrush
Load a flat, stiff brush with a mid-tone silver or gunmetal, wipe most of it off on a paper towel, then brush briskly across the whole model. Build it up gradually until the raised surfaces are bright and the recesses stay black. A large make-up brush is ideal for this because it's soft and covers big areas quickly.
For extra punch, follow with a lighter, brighter silver drybrush focused on the top edges only.
Step 3: Wash to unify
A wash pulls the metal together and gives it an oily, ancient feel. Black wash gives a cold, gunmetal finish. A dark blue or a mix of black and blue reads as gleaming chrome. A brown wash makes it look older and dirtier. Apply generously, then soak up any pooling on flat surfaces with a damp brush.
Step 4: Armour panels (optional)
If your dynasty has coloured carapace plates on the shoulders, head or torso, basecoat them now with two thin coats. Recess-wash the edges with a darker tone, then edge-highlight with a lighter shade. Smooth, flat panels contrast nicely with the textured, drybrushed metal around them.
Step 5: Make it glow
The glowing gauss weapons, eyes and power cores are what make this army instantly recognisable. Here's the simplest reliable method:
- Paint the glowing area white. A clean, bright base is essential.
- Apply a bright, transparent colour over the white. A contrast-style paint or a glaze in green, blue, red or orange works well. It will be darkest in the recesses and brightest on raised areas.
- Add a thin line or dot of pure white, or a very pale tint of your colour, to the brightest point.
To push the effect further, glaze a little of the glow colour onto the metal immediately around the light source. This "spill" is a simple form of object source lighting. Adding grime to the surrounding metal with oil washes makes the glow pop even more.
Step 6: Details that add character
- Cables and pipes: pick out in black or dark grey, then add a little gloss varnish to make them look oily.
- Gold trim on characters: paint brass over the silver, wash brown, and highlight with a bright gold. It separates leaders from rank-and-file models.
- Verdigris: on brass schemes, a turquoise wash dabbed into recesses gives centuries-old corrosion.
Step 7: Bases
Desert, ash or tomb-world stone bases suit these models well because they contrast with cold metal. Keep base colours muted so the glow stays the brightest thing on the model.
Painting vehicles and big models
The same steps work on large models; you just need a bigger drybrush and more patience. Break large flat panels up with a subtle gradient: drybrush a little more heavily towards the top of the model so it looks lit from above. Weathering pigments on the lower hull add a sense of scale and weight.
Troubleshooting
- Chalky drybrush: you are leaving too much paint on the brush. Wipe more off and build up slowly.
- Dull glow: the base wasn't white enough. Repaint the area white and reapply the colour.
- Metal looks flat: add a final bright edge highlight with a fine brush on the sharpest edges.
This method gets a unit of warriors finished in an evening, and it scales well to a full army. For an even faster start, combine it with the slapchop method for armour panels.
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