WIP Saxon Warrior Part 3

I put some more time into the arms and legs.  For the pants I used the same blue-brown mix as the tunic, just reduced the amount of blue.  The shadows were still 50/50 Ritterlich Blue and Brown Liner but the midtone went from 50/50 Soft Blue and Basic Dirt to 10/90 or 20/80 blue to brown.  Same with the highlights (Heather Blue and Bone Shadow).  I'm trying to create some consistency to the figure as a lot of these colors are used over and over again, while at the same time making sure the brown in the pants was different from all of the other versions of brown on the figure.

For the cloth wrapping on his left arm and lower legs I'm using one of my white mixes but shifting it.  So instead of Bone Shadow, Weathered Stone, and Leather White I'm using Blackened Brown, Bone Shadow, and Weathered Stone.  I may go in on the arm with a little Leather White to lighten it up more but I'll definitely keep the legs dark.

The hand got the same treatment as the face.  First the basic skin tones and then some red and purple glazes.  Purple in the shadows and red around the knuckles.

I wanted to add a little more detail to the shield.  I figure it's a wooden shield with a leather covering, so I added the part where the covering wraps around the edge and is tacked into place.  Now that the putty is dry I might flip it over and make some tears or slashes on the front.  That will be a bit tougher so we'll see.

Finally I've started to work on the base.  My first impulse was to put him on a plain dirt base with some rocks, grass, and perhaps a tree stump.  Easy to do but not very creative.  I'm trying to push myself to create more narrative bases.  When I do a plain old dirt base the story is 'hey look, I painted this figure.'  For this guy I'm thinking he's in the middle of a raid and has busted into someone's house or perhaps a mead hall looking for loot.  The trick will be conveying that story in the space I have available.  The first question was how do I get across that he's in a building.  I don't want to create a lot of the structure.  Even just a single wall will block a lot of the figure from view.  I suppose I could have done a small section of wall with a busted in door (the open door allowing us to see more of the figure).  Instead I opted to go with a large supporting beam from the interior of the structure.  I added a cross beam and support to make it seem like it was part of a building.  It's all made from balsa wood and then distressed/weathered using an x-acto knife.  I'll be adding a wood plank floor which will hopefully complete the interior look.

Once that is finished the next step will be adding debris to imply there's been a fight.  I made part of a broken table but it too up too much room on the base.  Instead I think I'll create a smashed chair and then other debris for the ground (perhaps shattered plates, glasses, etc).  We'll see how it looks as I add more pieces and try to figure out what else the scene might need.  The limited space is a challenge but it can also be an advantage.  It forces me to edit and really think about what I'm going to put there.  Hopefully the end result will be stronger because of it.