painting blog Sinarai's Paint & Kitbash Blog with a side of Homebrew

[Sinarai]

Hey everyone, happy to be here!

I found this community the other day via a random google search and on the side bar saw a Lumineth symbol... and here I am haha

A little about myself:

I am a relatively new hobbyist having only started last May (2019) but have been going hard into it ever since day one. I originally started with Seraphon as my Intro to Warhammer was Total War by CA, in that game I'm almost always the Lizardmen. Aside from that, I just love Dinosaurs and Mesoamerican histories, so joining the two is just amazing to me. 

However, with the Lumineth release I have all but switched over, this isn't to say I dont still work on my Seraphon.... but they're certainly not getting the attention they used to! 

The Lumineth to me are just brilliant (pun intended) all the way around. I love their lore, the silly Stoneguard hats, I love the Bull Symbolism they chose (excited for the other Aelementals) and just the models are gorgeous (except the heads, man, wth GW haha the alternative Lumineth heads are kinda horrible imo). 

My Original theme for my Lumineth was to be a firey destruction type theme with reds, oranges, yellows and a base of black. Over time this theme has blossomed more into a Rebirth & Destruction theme as I got more into my Alarith units. Really the big theme in my homebrew is balance, which I guess in many ways is also what Hysh is about! So works well lol

My first Lumineth model finished was a Warden, absolutely love it (and almost lost her shield! That was scary) and Ive slowly finished (or nearly finished) two Truestone Seneschals, Avalenor and currently working on my Spirit of the Mountain. Avalenor in my theme represents Destruction as the magma from his mountain back rages in battle, however the Spirit of the Mountain that follows him is about rebirth.. akd where there was once death & Destruction... there is inevitably Rebirth & Regrowth. 

I also enjoy writing my own homebrew (which I hope to share sometime), right now I am busy worldbuilding/raxe building a new non-chaos aligned Minotaur race, the Hathorians. A small little glimpse into this homebrew: The Hathorians & Ymetrican Longhorn are related.

Down below are some of my finished and WIP works, hope you like em and C&C is always welcome! 
 

[Sinarai]

I've been writing some homebrew for my Lumineth, and in that Homebrew I've begun to develope a Primodial goddess of Hysh that creates the Hathorians. I really wanted to make a kitbash of her and to be able to use her in Narrative games or just causual friendly games. Most of all however, I wanted to kitbash a cool unique model! 

With the help from @Gecktron with designing the beautiful symbol below, Egyption & Indian culture along with GW's gorgeous models and my imagination I think i've created a pretty close representation of Haset! She is still WIP, and keep in mind that she can take many different forms, so the form she is in may not actually be her true form 😉 I also want to share a bit of WIP homebrew about Haset with her debut!  I'm really happy with the progress so far and im equally excited to eventually start painting her and her offspring.

Hope you  Enjoy! C&C is always welcome!

Homebrew:

Haset:

A being of pure light and a primordial goddess of Hysh, Haset commands the light and magics of the realm as a master weaver controls a needle, all with the sound of her voice. On the battlefield the foe is mesmerized, not only the slaughter before them as she is potent in melee with a sword and hammer, but also the hymns and prayers that are song that make whole regiments burst into searing light or worse. For her people, the Hathorians, she is the Mother Spirit and a beacon of hope that does not falter. Her charge is to maintain the fluid natural balance of Hysh with the Mortal realms, in particular with Ulgu, at any cost. Without balance there can only be Chaos.

The Goddess Haset of the Hathorian Nation is an ancient twin spirit that resides in Hysh, her twin residing in Ulgu. Possibly as old as the Realm itself the goddess has seen the realm grow and evolve, along with the civilizations that grow and crumble within it. Her form glows with the light of Hysh as her spirit within is pure light itself, blinding and purifying and only when she dims her light can mortals look upon her. Many different things are rumored of the goddess’s form, for she can take on many. and no one but the High Priestesses of Haset know of her true form Some say they see an Aelven woman with a bovine head with not only two long horns but six horns in total, within the two top horns a large disc is held. Others say they see the form of a beautiful white bovine, not dissimilar to the Ymetrica Longhorn. The most outlandish tales tell of a symbol that dances in radiant shades of light as it whispers message of knowledge.  Only the High Priestesses of Haset know the Goddess’s true form, only one thing is constant in any of the sightings beyond the raging light: The Sphere above her head.

 

The Great Awakening

Eons before the Age of Myth there was the Great Awakening throughout the mortal realms, if this was the first or one-hundredth time no one can be sure but life sprang forth. From the smallest insect to gods and goddesses themselves, life seemed untamed and among the mad expanse of life came Haset. Haset’s existence began in a burst of light and all alone. In golden fields met by forests of permanent autumn leaves she walked looking in awe of what would come to be known as Hysh. Wildlife all about her made her curious and she it, small squirrels to mighty forest cats would come close to the Goddess, her light drawing them in like moths. Over time Haset earned the trust of the animals, but even then, she felt an emptiness inside, she had nothing or no one like herself. Searching over the course of years she travelled the lands, no where she found what she seeked. Seeking companionship as she travelled the realm, she began communicating with the mountain spirits of what would become known as Ymetrica of the Lumineth. As those relationships grew the mountain spirits knew they were bound, they however wanted to help Haset in her quest to find what she longed for. They made an offering of gemstone boulders, this act of kindness would to allow Haset to craft her own companions that could travel with her. Haset took boulders from the mountain, in wanting a part of herself to be in her creation she also took beams of light from herself and two of her ribs. Over the course of days Haset crafts a stunning light infused gemstone bovine statue in one of her two true images. Pleased with it she then sings an enchanting prayer that turns the statue into what would come to be known as the Ymetrican Longhorn.

 

Haset’s creations brought her much joy, they proved in many ways to be what she had yearned for. Together they travelled the mountains and the other numerous landscapes, over many years Haset was happy, however eventually she felt a hole form as if it were a part of herself she yearned for.

 

The joining of Light & Shadow

Having travelled all what would become known as the Ten Paradises, Haset set it in her mind that she needed to search outside of Hysh itself, she felt a pull to the Realm’s Edge and beyond. She found herself between Hysh and Ulgu, this pocket realm inside the void where light and shadow danced in harmony, in this place she felt home more than anywhere other than Hysh.  Purple mixed with blue and black mists crawled around her, orbs of light and shadow pulsed about seemingly leading Haset to a destination, where too she did not know. What seemed like days passed, the goddess even in her brightest and purest form of light could not see beyond what the shadows would allow, but eventually thousands of light and shadow orbs illuminated what was a giant field and a figure in front of her.  Hesitant she did not go further but the orbs about her began to push her forward even as she resisted, a voice then let out, “Do not push her, she is not a captive, she is my twin” a masculine voice comes from the shadowed figure. Confused, Haset asks the questions her soul seeks but answers are not found all that is known is that her twin found out of Hasets existence by chance and has since then waited in this pocket realm for when she might meet her twin. One last question remained, “What is your name?” Haset asked and in reply the shadowy figure responded, “Mnevus”.

 

Over the course of two centuries Mnevus showed Haset the secret to controlling the Shadows and she him the Light. Soon after these trials and lessons came to pass both Gods returned to their native realms, however with a pact between them a bond that burns inside them both. For as one Wanes the other Waxes, a cycle of balance and power.

 

The Age of Myth

During the Age of Myth..... 

(to be continued, added onto, and edited)

[Sinarai]

Small Update

In an effort (and after deciding I was originally just being lazy) to make Haset feel less demonic, I did end up switching her tail out to the SoTm/Avalenor bovine tail. This simple switch definitely (imo) has made the difference and although I did like the KoS tail, she now feels more Lumineth/Hysh in origin to me.

Aside from that I've begun work on my Spirit of the Mountain again, sadly no update pics as not much is different yer but we're moving again! I've been in a building mode so I haven't really painted in about 2 weeks or so, maybe 3? Felt good to hold a brush again.

To help break back into painting after so much building I finished my Artisan Guild Coatl. I had painted all but the two back wings over a year ago, due to life and what-not I never finished it, until last night. A year later, I'm still pretty happy with the paint job but feel it highlights progress I've made since then.

Any C&C is welcome, and that goes for anything that is posted in this blog 🙂

 

Edited October 31, 2020 by Sinarai

[Sinarai]

Hey all! Hope you are doing well! Today was a oretty good day, it was a bit warmer and good weather so I was able to prime a bit today, meaning I was able to prime Haset! 

I had an original color scheme in mind, but through trial, error and eventually listening to my gut I think I have a color scheme!

It's not the most traditional color scheme but I think when finished it'll really be something cool. These are just the base colors for now, but I plan to darken her skin up but for the pink and yellow I cant decide what to shade them with, crimson maybe? I have the purple contrast also i could thin a bit. I really like the original pink in the first couple photos, so still debating if I want to cover the yellow up or not.

Anyway! Here is my progress for the night, more time worked on her than Id care to admit, but we have started 🙂

C&C always welcome 

Edited November 3, 2020 by Sinarai

[Sinarai]

Better look since my lightbox produces a big glare for her

[Sinarai]

Small update for WIP Wednesday! 

Working on the armor a bit before I go pass out (almost 4am here), adding greens and slowly working on some copper trim, really loving how its turning out.

For the stockings and cloak I made a very watered down wash of courrburg crimson to gently build some depth, still a work in progress. 

Slowly moving forward! 

C&C or general thoughts always welcome

[Sinarai]

Not sure how much more I'll get done tonight, but I wanted to share my Progress for WIP Wednesday

Began work on Haset's mask and Celestial Disc, combing elements of Hathor from Egyptian Mythology & my own homebrew this is where we are at!

A bit of homebrew headcanon:

The disc above Hast's head represents the Waxing and Waning of Hysh and Ulgu, and more to the point her own power. As a twin God, with her twin residing in Ulgu, her strength is tied to her twin; as ones power rises the others falls in a continuous cycle. The disc, like the twins cycle, is continually changing and shows which Realm and God is the dominant.

Having a lot of fun with this project ☺

I was also able to start a little bit on my High Warden,  using a new priming method ive never done before! I believe it's called the Zenthiel method? Did Chaos Black and then a light dusting of Chorax White,  after that I shaded orange, been doing highlights after that.

Any C&C is welcome

[Sinarai]

Hey all!

So, not a whole lot to update you on, but I do have a few things

Haset hasn't had a lot done on her, she has however had some of her Chalice of Shadows worked on a bit, base shadowing

She is also seen here with my two WIP gemini orbs, one representing Light & the other Shadow!

"When Light & Shadow come together, there isn't anything one cannot accomplish. For Light & Shadow draw their power from one another, and when a balance is found and true discipline reached... Light & Shadow consume all" - Haset, Primordial Goddess of Hysh and master of both Light & Shadow speaking to her twin in Ulgu.
 

Probably the most exciting thing on the list is my new kitbash, a long horned Pegasus for my Dawnrider Steedmaster! I had some left over Phoenix wings that were already chopped up + a left over horn from the Stegadon kit... and I just love to kitbash lol I think itll be a fun project.

Last but not least, I finally primed all of my first 10 wardens, including shields (not shown)! 

 

Exciting times y'all! Hopefully Ill have a more exciting post for you later!

Edited November 10, 2020 by Sinarai
Added a homebrew quote

[Sinarai]

Here an update on the Steedmaster on Pegacorn

working greenstuff into feathers I folded it over itself twice by pulling it down, also carving little feather lines/details. I'm definitely no sculptor, but I'm proud of these wings! When primed I can't tell that the model isn't a real kit (personally, others might be able to).

next post shows the painting progress!

[Sinarai]

So, I couldn't sleep at all tonight (it's now 9am, been up for 18 hours?) so I decided to do some painting and work on my Steedmaster. Looking at feather patterns I decided to do a kinda basic triangle type design going down the feather. I alsonwanted the feather tuff at the top of tue wing to be brighter, sonthe larger main feathers have a bit more wash on them. After getting the wings to a good point I then decised ti cintinue the black and white/grey and continue with Zebra Stripes. I was nervous at first, but after adding the base color to the armor it definitely feels right! 

C&C always appreciated 

[Sinarai]

So, a pretty big post, something I'm really excited to share...

Engine of Tepok/Metzlitlaco (undecided if I'll go a homebrew name route or an official name route, probably official)

I have had the original Warhammer coatl sitting next to my bed for about 6 months now, no real idea what to do with it, originally I was thinking of doing an endless spell with it. However, I believe this will be a far better use of it, not only will it actually get to be seen on the table, it will also give my Engine of the Gods a unique look. I still want to add some stuff to the howdah itself, but trying to decide what without making it look too busy, and still have mold lines and such to clean.

I'm really excited to see this come together, might even magnetize a Slann for it

The Stegadon itself is close to done, just a few more details and such to do Decided to go with a Silver metal to represent the moon (homebrew reasons) instead of the traditional gold metal.

I hope you all enjoy the direction this is headed, let me know your true thoughts down below! I would love to hear some feedback Hoping to have more pictures of this and other projects soon!

[LuminethMage]

That’s a really fabulous conversion! 👏 And good idea to not going down the endless spell route, I‘ve heard that some units can just auto-dispel ES 😇. 

Edited January 31, 2021 by LuminethMage

[Sinarai]

14 minutes ago, LuminethMage said:

That’s a really fabulous conversion! 👏 And good idea to not going down the endless spell route, I‘ve heard that some units can just auto-dispel ES 😇. 

Thanks man! Im pretty happy with it, now to finish thr Stegadon and then clean mold lines on the engine/howdah lol

Agreed, definitely a better use of it, going to make for a cool piece when finished.

[Sinarai]

Small update on the Engine of Tepok!

I primed the howdah about three days ago, finally getting the courage to start, I have begun doing base coats.

For the wood elements, I have gone with my redwood recipe, which i will darken a tad before adding highlights; I really love the look of redwood and Birch (common woods used in my models).

For the Coatl I have decided on a jade feel, hoping to achieve an aged jade look, I hope to do the same for the black parts of the howdah also, or possibly a purple quartz look. The arches of the Engine itself im opting for a more neutral color, going for a stone look.

All fairly early WIP, though I do think the statue of Tepok is looking pretty good! I know Tepoks color is Purple, but I i really love jade.

Thoughts are always welcome, more progress to come!

[Sinarai]

Hey everyone! I hope you are doing well on this beautiful sunday (at least here it is! little bit of sun with fresh snow fall)

Wanted to share an update to my Engine of Tepok/The Serpent Engine!

First off, I really love this project, it is challenging me to try different things or improve upon recipes i've used before (such as the redwood). The Stegadon model itself is just beautiful with all its details, a lot of room for highlights, shadows, building up different colors if you do patterns, just a fun model to work with.

Ok! lets delve into what has been done  

So, the Stegadon itself is done, baring touch ups that i find along the way/last check over, I really love the pattern and how the colors came together; I dont really want to mess with it much.

As for the howdah and engine... such a blast! I began working on the central parts that were originally black, and decided to go with a quartz center. Using white scar, xereus purple, lilac and druchii violet, I began with doing splotches of random color of semi watery/wet paint (not so wet its running). After i got the semi pattern of what i want, while still wet i then bring in a light, light layer of druchii violet to blend all the colors together, doing a few minor splotches of white or purple if i feel a section lost color with the blending. After letting it dry, I look at it, if i needs touch ups...start over again on that one area and go from there  luckily the floor turned out perfect, although the icons on the wood poles may need a touch up or two (possibly too much white on one of them).

For the shields i decided to go with jade again, to match the statue of the Feathered Serpent. Using Caliban Green, Sybarite green, Gauss Blaster Green, and Coelia Greenshade to achieve my jade look. I started with making the veins with the lighter greens, and then using the shade to highlight them more; giving a more natural look. I also added a symbol on each shield in purple, representing Tepok and the other two serpent gods of the Seraphon (one of which is a homebrew serpent goddess).

I also have done the cloth sections of the howdah, using rakkarth flesh, Zandari dust, and seraphim sepia, i feel it really came out well. As for the metal icons on the cloth sections, I so far have used just Fersian grey, still debating on what I want to do with them fully; though i am thinking of doing the icons in lilac and the back part of the metal to stay as fersian grey.

All in all, some great progress on the howdah so far, I am hoping to work on the engine mroe soon  so close to finishing the howdah itself though I think! hoping to be done with this project in the next few days, though not going to rush it.

hope you all are doing well, and I hope whatever project you are working on is bringing you joy and not frustration. take care, and as always , I love C&C

[Sinarai]

Good Morning everyone! I hope you all are doing well today!

got an update on my Engine of Tepok I've been working a lot to practice my highlighting on this, really pushing myself to do more than I've ever done on a model in that respect, also working on jade and quartz work. I think overall I have done pretty well in these goals, although there is room for improvement no doubt.

I got some pretty good work done on my Engine of Tepok last night, I was finally able to start the Engine itself again! Although I already had the Jade statue of Tepok done, I was able to work on the arch itself. For the arch, I'm going for an ancient stone vibe, the idea that it's stone from Lustria itself that's infused with ancient power, more so than some other Engines.

For the arch, I did edge highlights in Russ Grey ontop of the original Apothocary White I did, and for the connection/support points I went with Jade and then the flame coming out of the Coatl's mouth a quartz purple again; which I think came out really well.

I am considering putting a glaze over the quartz areas, however, it does make me a bit nervous to do so lol So we will see if I go through with that.

All in all, I'm getting closer to being able to do the skink crew (plus maybe Slann?) and then the base! I also have some focus to reapply to my other Stegadon, now that this one is at the same point (or possibly closer to completion now) as my custom one you can expect to see the Crested-Stegadon soon!

I hope you all have been enjoying this project, its been an absolute blase for me

Any C&C is welcome

[LuminethMage]

Really like the purple quartz! The jade is also really done well! 

[Sinarai]

3 hours ago, LuminethMage said:

Really like the purple quartz! The jade is also really done well! 

Thanks man! Been really practicing those two things specifically, so it feels nice to hear that

hoping to start the skinks soon and then the base, still debating if Ill add a slann to it or not

[Sinarai]

The Engine of Tepok

Wanted to show a video of the engine itself away from the Stegadon & Howdah. 

(Touch ups to be made, Coatl used to represent Tepok)

[Chalkos Chiva]

Cool concept! I'm really digging the Great Bull conversions and the Keeper of Secrets one. Also,  that Brontosaurus is too awesome lol! 

[Sinarai]

1 hour ago, Chalkos Chiva said:

Cool concept! I'm really digging the Great Bull conversions and the Keeper of Secrets one. Also,  that Brontosaurus is too awesome lol! 

Thank you!

The Hathorians (Bull conversions) are definitely a prohect if passion, definitely having a lot of fun with them, and I have more coming soon-ish! I have a monster/behemoth planned next + 2 more foot troops for now, but definitely want to expand to a 1k-2k point list of them. 

Lol the Brachiosaurus is a project ive been working off and on for awhile now for my Seraphon, building her piece by piece. I had to rebuild one of her platforms on her howdah, as it wad accidentally knocked off by my gf when it was dry fitted lol all fixed now though. She is a mixture of 3d printing, gw bits and a scientific model dinosaur; hoping to have her done eventually .

[Sinarai]

I must have forgotten to share these when I finished, but here are the finished models of both Haset and her Warchief

Haset came out super well, her green armor matched with the pinks and birch wood makes her feel like a walking cherry blossom tree in some ways. I'm absolutely in love with her base also, although simple it does feel like she's walking through some ruins.

As for her warchief, I am blown away by the greenstuff and how it turned out, I have had some people ask if i bought it like that, and i still sometimes struggle to believe I did it lol but his fur turned out awesome and just the whole model and how it came together. He is also the first model i've ever used cork for on the base, which turned out gorgeous!

[Kronos]

Loving that KoS Haset conversion. Better that the sum of its parts 🤘

[Sinarai]

1 hour ago, Kronos said:

Loving that KoS Haset conversion. Better that the sum of its parts 🤘

Thanks a lot, I appreciate it! Worked really hard on her for sure, definitely need to return to her homebrew a bit at some point and flesh it out more

[Sinarai]

I have begun slowly working on my Thunder Lizard project again for my Seraphon. I started this project (for those that don't know) a month after I started the hobby, so around 18ish months ago. I have been building her piece by piece, and so far she is coming along nicely. A combination of a tamiya brachiosarus, seraphon bits (14+ carno crests, and need more!), a beautifully designed howdah by a friend of mine, and inspiration from Dinotopia.. its been a blast of a project, and I look forward to continuing on. 

Named Tlanextic, which means 'Light of Dawn', she is a symbol of hope and strength to my Temple Host. I started working on her chest armor and the skink throne, going a blue-gold look with Retribution Armor with a Space Wolves grey contrast so far.

Wanted to show a video of her, which I haven't ever done. To me its such a cool project since it spans my whole hobby career, and you can see different growth points in the painting. Definitely has its imperfections, but im very proud of the work thus far. She could stand in as a Dread Saurian for causual games, but I also have custom rules

Stay tuned, more updates coming as I finish up my Engine of the Gods.

Edited February 16, 2021 by Sinarai