Hi all,
I've been asked a couple of times here and elsewhere to give a run down on how I paint quick-and-dirty red desert bases, which can represent either martian, outback or anywhere other environment characterised by large areas of flat red sand and rock.
What I did What I was trying to do
1. What You NeedIn order of appearance, you'll need some kind of sculptable filler, I prefer air-drying clay for basing work, but you could probably use green stuff or some other putty to equal effect. For texture I use Vallejo brown earth, as it has very fine grain size, and lastly you'll need some paint. I'm sure the right colour exists, but I use a mix of Vallejo Amaranth red and sand brown, and mix in some bone white for highlights.
Tools wise, you'll need some sort of tool to poke things into place, I use a steel dental tool, and you'll need paintbrushes and drybrushes. Don't waste your good brushes on this job.
2. preparing the baseI work with the miniature on the base, as I find the results are stronger if the miniature is firmly anchored to the base by its own platform. It's important to make sure the miniatures feet are neither recessed into the base, nor raised too far above the top of the rim. Of course, if you're working with plastics, the work is done for you. Use this opportunity to clean up any mold lines on the base edge. If you're working on the IWM bases, the mold lines are pretty prominent, so you might need to hit it with a rotary tool to achieve a flat surface.
3. building up the baseNext you need to level the base out as much as possible. For this I use air-drying clay, which you can push into the gaps fairly easily, and comes off with a bit of water, so is easy to clean up. You can also use a brush with water to smooth away any finger prints, tool marks or brush strokes in the surface. The clay will shrink as it sets, so you may need to do it twice to get things right, but it's very forgiving (if a bit messy) to work with. This should be left to set overnight before continuing.
4. Applying the textureThis is where the brown earth comes in. Once you're happy with the general shape, and it's had time to set, grab an old brush and slap some brown earth over it. I make this layer quite thin, in keeping with the flat desert look I was going for. be careful not to leave any smooth patches, or put any unwanted texture on the base edge or the miniature. If you're quick you can clean up mistakes with a bit of water, and as with the clay, water can be used over the top to smooth away brush strokes. Once again, ensure adequate drying time before you move on, as you don't want the colour of the brown earth mixing with your paint. I recommend finishing this step before any paint goes on the miniature (I don't always follow my own advice).
5. Base CoatI use a roughly equal mix of 71.034 Sand Brown, and 70.829 Amaranth. Water down so it gets in between all the texture, and invades any cracks in the base. Two coats normally gets the job done.
6. DrybrushStarting with the basecoat colour, mix in either white or beige, and drybrush over the raised parts of the texture. I normally do this three times, with progressively lighter colour and less paint applied to give the appearance of depth.
I also let some of this get on the feet and lower legs of the miniature, to give the appearance of a coat of dust.
7. FinishingOnce you're happy with the drybrushing, paint the edge of the base. I find this looks best in either black or dark brown, but that's down to personal preference. The main thing is keep it thin, nothing's worse than a great looking base ruined by a big brush-blob of paint on the edge.
If you want to see some finished examples, have a look at my Donegal Guards in the miniatures section of the forum:
https://bg.battletech.com/forums/index.php?topic=62692.0
