I’ve decided with the new painting regime that it’s time to start sprinkling in some of those models that I’ve been sitting on, unpainted and unused for the past 30-ofdd years. Sure, I have no particular gaming use for a lot of them, but that’s not really going to be the point. This guy is from the RT7 Mercenaries range, that was kinda-sorta rolled into the Imperial Army range a little later. Or at least GW of the day decided that the Army was a fine place to use many of these models if you’d bought them.
This model really has two notable things to him as far as I can see – firstly his name sounds like he should be a male porn performer. Secondly, he shares his clothing and gear style with the Chainsaw Warrior(s) from this era of GW’s more eclectic game output, shortly before they moved into the All Warhammer, All The Time mode that was their situation for many years.
Initially, I’d more-or-less finished the model with plain dark green fatigues – very similarly to how he was originally painted in the old catalogues, so long ago. But… no. It looked good, but a little boring. I wanted this old model to have something more interesting to him. So I went for some camo that brings him a little (or a lot) further into the current era. Can anyone pick what it’s meant to be? I also decided to make sure that everyone around him would know his rank, if not his name. I’m much happier with him now – a nice combination of old and new.
And now, as I seem to write so often here – he’s done! Despite being in a box barely-started for well over a decade (he was another with green railroad flock on his base) and then sitting on my desk, ignored for a year or three – he was actually both fun and easy to paint. So that means more of this sort of thing. At least one more in each forthcoming tray. Until I get bored of them again, at least – but then, most of these old Mecenaries, Adventurers and Pirates were at least somewhat unique models, so it should help to sustain my interest.
Azazel's Bitz Box. 
I’m still enjoying these classic old models, so I hope your interest holds for a few more!
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I’ve got another one picked out for the next Tray, and I’ve been putting the finishing touches today on something that’s just as classic. Probably even more classic, despite being a fraction less old.
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He’s pretty cool. Definitely sounds like a porn star though haha.
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Thinking about it more in the last day or two, I think it’s a reference to the old “Sgt Rock” comics from back in the day…
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sgt._Rock
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Ahh yes, most definitely
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Very nice! 🙂 I’ve seen you excel at painting camouflage before but this I really like!
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Thanks John – as a single model, this guy was kinda a test run to see how I’d do at painting Multicam before moving it onto any other models.
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Lovely work once again, that’s a great-looking mercenary! The camo looks like multicam, maybe a bit darker? I’m any case, it’s wonderful and looks like a/the real thing!
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Yep – you picked it. If we weren’t in the middle of a pandemic, I’d try to get a “proper” multicam set of colours, but I think it might just be the difficulty of not overwhelming the base green with the blotches at this scale!
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Excellent camouflage mate.
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Thanks, maen!
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That is really great. Love the camo. A figure full of character.
Cheers,
Pete.
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Thanks, Pete. Some of those old models really hit the mark. Some less so, of course.. 😉
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You know when you get caught between a rock and a hard place?
Well, he really is the ‘Rock’ and the ‘Hard’ place all rolled into one!
Lovely stuff, Azazel
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Thanks Mate! Very happy with this one going from a “whatever” model to one I now have a fondness for.. 🙂
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He absolutely has the right name for a change in career there but honestly, I think this is a pretty cool sculpt considering its age. I like the camo pattern a lot and it is impressive considering how little room you had to operate on the mini too. I hope to see more old sculpts like this as it is well before my time and it is nice to see something that is not all Warhammer all the time like you said.
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Thanks Kuribo! Glad you enjoyed this model and also the Squat from the same era. I’ve got a few posts to photograph and write with a D&D slant over the next week now that the weather is ok to spray again!
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I look forward to it! I prefer fantasy to Sci-Fi but only just 🙂
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Porn star by day, solider by night! He’s great, that camo is really lovely (given the scale of the model some of that detail must be absolutely minute).
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Thanks, Wudu! I think my personal verdict verdict is that I can do a decent multicam in scale, but it’s going to be for special models and occasions only, rather than something with wide issue!
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Love it mate – I’ve never painted the sarge myself, but I’ve always thought he had a hint of super hero about him… seeing him in camo reminds me of Jim Carey’s character in Kick Ass!!
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Thanks Alex – a balaclava or hood is one thing, but there’s no way to make those eyes look anything like natural!
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That camo is superb!
Hadn’t picked up that he had design in common with the Chainsaw Warriors. That’s a nice way of justifying the incorporation of that trio into a Mercenary force!
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Indeed! I’m thinking that (once I find them) I may do a bit of a repaint-tweak on them and pull them out of the standard IG squads that they reside in, and redo them more like this guy in a “Kill Team”-friendly manner.
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Ah yes, a tribute to SGT Rock of Easy Company, a staple of my boyhood comic reading.
Very nice job on the painting – especially the camo and the chevrons. Though you subjects of the Queen always have them upside down from an American perspective! Tough details to pull off and you definitely did here.
The tray strategy is working. It’s been nice to see stuff that is new to me, as this figure is.
Good to see you doing such a nice variety lately.
“All Warhammer all the time makes Jack a dull boy” as they might say!
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Thanks Mark! I never read the comics but had heard of them, and so when I looked up the model’s name (loved how models all had individual names back then) and started typing it slowly filtered through my brain to make the connection!
Good eye on you spotting the chevrons! I went for the low-vis look there, and they do blend in a lot (successful by design, I guess!)
I actually feel like I should do more Warhammer! I’ve got a couple of squads of Space Marines I have been putting off finishing for years now – though the nice thing is The Tray limits what I can work on (unless I Need It For A Game) and so I can pick a nice variety of models out when loading up the next tray….
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