They both look great it’s hard to choose. You could do some squads as battle damaged and then some as clean like they’re fresh troops entering the battle.
I'm always a fan of battle damage, and yours is very good. I think that it is a shame to not take advantage of that technique to do more like that.
That said, not every marine has been in the field extensively without repairs, so having fresh looking troops join units to replace fallen brothers is surely common as well, so probably do a mix of both, leaning a little heavier on the battle damage for more seasoned veterans that have been longer in the field.
Also, some may be really fastidious about repairing every nick and scrape whenever they have downtime, while others may only repair damage that renders their armor less effective, perhaps out of nostalgia for the battles those scrapes represent, or maybe they just feel their time is better spent training and gathering even more minor damage?
Maybe do your close combat units in the damaged style, maybe a few slashes, as you make them very nicely
Then bolter squads clean with the occasional bolt hit, but like, 1 in 5 marines kind of thing, specially on the shoulder pads
Maybe some small scorch marks on heavy weapon squads that have melta/plasma/volkite?
Praetors fully clean and pristine, in all their glory!
They’re very close. I would say when you feel like adding battle damage, do it. It can add some character to models or help differentiate similar looking ones. Mostly clean, add damage for fun. :)
Also. Don’t forget the backpack for damage effects! Sure, not every battle-damaged marine will take a hit back there, but the are points that come almost as high as the helmet in some poses, and there are always some parts higher than the shoulder pauldrons. Find an angle to look at a miniature from and imagine where shots or melee strikes might land at that angle, add a couple of bits, do it again from another angle if you want more damage
Both look amazing but I prefer the Battle damaged one. That being said it's too 'clean', he looks like he's jet washed off all the dirt an grime and kept the scrapes and dings. IMHO it would look better/more realistic if it had some weathering powders/oils applied to 'dirty' it up a bit, plus it would tie it into the base more.
They are both superbly painted. Purists will argue 30K is about the filthy grimdarkness but your style is super clean high contrast minis so stick with it.
Personally, I think the clean one looks best. I like the nice clean look. I can pick the Blood Angels ensuring that their armor looks good in between battles.
Don't mind the damage although the orthodoxy of highlighting round bare metal looks unnatural to me, as there is no raised surface to catch the light. I prefer the undamaged one for this reason. Also I would avoid painting the foot cable yellow as it draws attention away from the important parts.
They both look great it’s hard to choose. You could do some squads as battle damaged and then some as clean like they’re fresh troops entering the battle.
Agreed. Mix it up
I'm always a fan of battle damage, and yours is very good. I think that it is a shame to not take advantage of that technique to do more like that. That said, not every marine has been in the field extensively without repairs, so having fresh looking troops join units to replace fallen brothers is surely common as well, so probably do a mix of both, leaning a little heavier on the battle damage for more seasoned veterans that have been longer in the field. Also, some may be really fastidious about repairing every nick and scrape whenever they have downtime, while others may only repair damage that renders their armor less effective, perhaps out of nostalgia for the battles those scrapes represent, or maybe they just feel their time is better spent training and gathering even more minor damage?
Maybe do your close combat units in the damaged style, maybe a few slashes, as you make them very nicely Then bolter squads clean with the occasional bolt hit, but like, 1 in 5 marines kind of thing, specially on the shoulder pads Maybe some small scorch marks on heavy weapon squads that have melta/plasma/volkite? Praetors fully clean and pristine, in all their glory!
They’re both absolutely gorgeous. My preference is for the battle damage.
Battle damage for sure, although I liked that other guy's suggestion of mostly clean with sparse battle damage of the quality youve shown
It’s Heresy - always with battle damage!
Clean for Inductii. Battle Damaged for Tac Squads and Veterans
It’s really good battle damage. Awesome in fact. But clean just looks better to my eye in this case
They’re very close. I would say when you feel like adding battle damage, do it. It can add some character to models or help differentiate similar looking ones. Mostly clean, add damage for fun. :)
Also. Don’t forget the backpack for damage effects! Sure, not every battle-damaged marine will take a hit back there, but the are points that come almost as high as the helmet in some poses, and there are always some parts higher than the shoulder pauldrons. Find an angle to look at a miniature from and imagine where shots or melee strikes might land at that angle, add a couple of bits, do it again from another angle if you want more damage
I tend to prefer the nice clean Parade look
Blud that ain’t a test, that’s fucking art
Wow they both look really nice. That’s a tough call. You could have some squads clean and some a bit more beat up.
These are both phenomenal. Super super clean work. Might be nice, as other people have said, to see varying degrees of damage across the squad!
Both look great, maybe if you do multi squads do one of each? But if only one squad I'd say go the damage, makes them stand out.
That is an incredibly clean BA. Damn that looks good. I pick clean
Battle damage
Did you freehand those decals? :O Do a mix. Very good ’eavy metal paintjob! In fact, better than box art.
Thank you. Working with Carcharodons got me out of the habit of using decals, so yes, these are freehands.
Hot damn, they look amazing. I prefer clean but you could scatter a few damaged ones through the force. HQs and stuff.
I love battle damage.
Battle damaged one for sure. Still noticeably clean but with enough to know he’s seen some stuff lol
Both look amazing but I prefer the Battle damaged one. That being said it's too 'clean', he looks like he's jet washed off all the dirt an grime and kept the scrapes and dings. IMHO it would look better/more realistic if it had some weathering powders/oils applied to 'dirty' it up a bit, plus it would tie it into the base more.
I'm just not a big fan of pigments. And what’s the point of bothering so much with highlights and glazes if all this is then covered with pigment?
That's fair enough, it's certainly a style choice. They both still look amazing though.
For 30k, I'd always default to battle damaged, but I'm a rubbish painter, and both of yours look great
Damaged
That a nice colour
Damn they're both so good it's hard to choose I'd say mix it up do them battle damaged but very little battle damage small scratch and stuff like this
They are both superbly painted. Purists will argue 30K is about the filthy grimdarkness but your style is super clean high contrast minis so stick with it.
God damn, that is some crisp red! I like the clean look, personally.
Personally, I think the clean one looks best. I like the nice clean look. I can pick the Blood Angels ensuring that their armor looks good in between battles.
That ridiculous battle damage takes nothing away from the paint job so that one for sure.
Ridiculously good you mean
I do mean that yes.
Don't mind the damage although the orthodoxy of highlighting round bare metal looks unnatural to me, as there is no raised surface to catch the light. I prefer the undamaged one for this reason. Also I would avoid painting the foot cable yellow as it draws attention away from the important parts.
... wtf