How to paint Black Seas French Navy ships

Hello and welcome to our blog. In this article I will show you my style of painting French Navy for Black Seas by Warlord Games.

I mentioned this in my previous blog article, but I wanted to reiterate the fact that when it comes to painting miniatures there is no right or wrong way, it’s all about finding your own technique which is fun and enjoyable for you.

In this painting tutorial I use a combination of Citadel Paints, Vallejo and Ammo by Mig.

1. How to build your ship – Black Seas models come on a sprue. The miniature will need to be cut out from the sprue and washed in soapy water to remove any residue. Once the model is dry, progress to assembling the model by using plastic cement. 
2. Priming - This is a crucial part of painting any miniature. Primer provides a suitable surface on plastic models to which our acrylic paint will adhere easily. It is paramount to create a smooth and thin layer of primer on your miniature. Firstly, you don't want any unnecessary texture on your model, nor do you want to obscure any details. I use an Airbrush as it provides great accuracy and a good level of coverage. You can also use a rattle can primer I would recommend one by The Army Painter or Citadel by Games Workshop. (tip: warm up the can in warm water before you spray it). In this example I've used Airbrush loaded with Vallejo Surface Primer White 73.600.
3. Paints - in this step we will paint the model with selected paints. I add few drops of water to the paint. The watered down consistency makes it a lot easier to control the paint on your brush. However it will not provide full coverage after first layer, but it does not obscure any detail. Let the first layer of paint dry and re-apply the same paint again. You will get a nice level of coverage and all the small details will still be visible.

 Step by step guide:

The acrylic paints will need thinning down with water to get better paint control. Using acrylic paints straight from the pot will obscure intricate details due to the thickness of the paint. 

Hull and Masts- Painted in yellow, using 50-50 mixture of Vallejo Model Colour – Sand Yellow 70.916 and Flat Yellow 70.953. I completed this step using The Army Painter Regiment brush.

Keel and metal parts- Painted in Vallejo Model Air - Tyre Black 71.315. I completed this step using The Army Painter Regiment brush.

Bannister on the deck - Painted in blue using Vallejo Model Colour – Dark Prussian Blue 70.899. I completed this step using The Army Painter Regiment brush.

Wooden deck - Painted in wood effect, using 50-50 mixture of Ammo Mig - New Wood A.MIG-037 and Light Wood A.MIG-038. I completed this step using The Army Painter Regiment brush.

Decorations– Painted in gold using Citadel Layer – Liberator Gold. I completed this step using The Army Painter Regiment brush.

Wash – The entire model was washed with Citadel Agrax Earthshade. Sails were painted with Citadel Contrast Paint - Apothecary White. I completed this step using The Army Painter Regiment brush.

If you want to try my technique, visit our store for Warlord Games Black Seas Starter set.

Now your ship is ready to fight your battles. 

Happy painting. 

Mack