Making zombies / Nurgle look striking at arm's length

[Vtek]

Hi!

(I think it's my first post - nice to meet you!)

I'm paingting Nurgle daemons and marines. I quite like them up close (nothing too fancy, messy, but expressive enough for my liking), but at arm's length they look like a grey mass, especially when sitting on the shelf next to my Necrons with glowing guns:
View attachment 56096

So, do you know a way to make Nurglies (or zombies, or anything similar) look interesting / striking from afar?

One way would be to use bright green, but for me bright green zombies look a bit too much like tropical frogs.

Games Workshop has this new white and red colour scheme for Ghouls I saw in the Flesh Eater Courts book, it looks nice, but I'm yet to find a good tutorial for that.

And there's this style from illustrations, where zombies look like painted with fire (like on the cover here: https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Battletome-Flesh-Eater-Courts-EN) but I don't know if it's possible to translate that look for miniatures.

Would you have any tutorials, pictures, or ideas?

 

[Ghool]

Hi!

(I think it's my first post - nice to meet you!)

I'm paingting Nurgle daemons and marines. I quite like them up close (nothing too fancy, messy, but expressive enough for my liking), but at arm's length they look like a grey mass, especially when sitting on the shelf next to my Necrons with glowing guns:
View attachment 56096

So, do you know a way to make Nurglies (or zombies, or anything similar) look interesting / striking from afar?

One way would be to use bright green, but for me bright green zombies look a bit too much like tropical frogs.

Games Workshop has this new white and red colour scheme for Ghouls I saw in the Flesh Eater Courts book, it looks nice, but I'm yet to find a good tutorial for that.

And there's this style from illustrations, where zombies look like painted with fire (like on the cover here: https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Battletome-Flesh-Eater-Courts-EN) but I don't know if it's possible to translate that look for miniatures.

Would you have any tutorials, pictures, or ideas?

It's all about the contrast.
In order to make anything 'pop' it needs contrast at the scale of miniatures. That contrast can come from colour or tone.
I often paint zombie flesh very pale, and then glaze deep reds and/or purples, then contrast those with green glazes around open wounds and such.

I only have this tutorial released so far, but I do have another one on putrid flesh (the methods described above) releasing next month.
This tutorial is a more ashen flesh, than rotten flesh. But it should help with some variation at the least.
I don't use GW paints though, so you'll have to find equivalents.

 

[Webmonkey]

Depends on what kind of zombies you want. If you want fantasy type zombies, then greens and blues and browns and such. If you are going for a more realistic look,.. then a pale blue-grey basecoat, and a few layers/washes of flesh color over the top. Stay away from reds/oranges in the flesh, as then tend to read as "alive". Though, if you are going Nurgle,.. plenty of greens and such. Using reds/purples to accentuate sores/wounds. And any exposed guts should get a brush-on shiny type finish. This will help sell the illusion that the guts are still "wet" with blood,.. etc.

 

[Vtek]

Ghool, that's some very nice blending in the tutorial, thanks! I will keep an eye on your future zombie tutorials. I don't use GW paints myself, so no worries about finding paint equivalents, I'm used to that

You both guys - contrasting the flesh with the wounds, like you suggested, sounds good, thanks! I think I will try with the fiery look, and if it doesn't work out - I will try with the wounds.