Learn to Paint — Yondu & Nova from Marvel: Crisis Protocol
Recently, we reviewed Monument Hobbies Pro Acryl AMP Colors – Cosmic Sets #1 and #2. Between quality and color, both are excellent sets for painting your sci-fi themed pieces. Whether you’re battling in the Grimdark or taking the fights to the streets of New York, they’re great for beginner and veteran painters alike. And we also have reviews for Army Painter and AK Interactive, who also produce fantastic paints that can be used for painting up your MCP models. For this article, we figured we’d split up the work and each paint a model with our own paints and styling.
Alec: I wanted to try out the box sets on a cosmic character from Atomic Mass Games, so thought it would be appropriate to paint up Nova from the Marvel: Crisis Protocol Yondu and Nova expansion pack. I used both Cosmic Sets as well as some colors from the Pro Acryl Base Set.
Pro Acryl Base Set
24 of our best selling colors to get you started with the Pro Acryl lineup! All Monument paints are a premium high-density pigment in superior acrylic mediums. They provide great coverage right out of the bottle, thin evenly to achieve any level of transparency, and dry to a beautiful matte finish. Whether brush or air
AMP Colors Cosmic Paint Set #1
The First Cosmic Paint Set with AMP Colors! This set includes 9 AMP Colors with the same, amazing Pro Acryl quality you know. 22ml bottles Colors include – Cool Grey, Black Red, Dark Navy Blue, Beige Grey, Orange Yellow, Peach Flesh, Bright Green Blue, Magenta Wash, Petroleum Brown Wash
AMP Colors Cosmic Paint Set #2
The second Cosmic Paint Set with AMP Colors! This set includes 9 AMP Colors with the same, amazing Pro Acryl quality. 22ml bottles Colors include – Slate Grey, Red Orange, Burnt Umber, Green Brown, Bright Brown Grey, Grey Green, Steel, Brown Grey Wash, Payne’s Grey Wash
Randy: And for Yondu, I primarily used the Army Painter Fanatics line, along with some support from the AK Quick Gen, 3rd Gen, Citadel Contrast, and a hint of Army Painter Metallic Speedpaint. And I started with Army Painter Speedpaints, which was a first for me!
If you want to learn how to paint Yondu & Nova, read on!
Assembly
Yondu
Randy: Yondu is an easy build. However, you will have an easier time establishing base tones if you keep his base separate from the body. This way you can paint under his jacket, because once he’s attached to the base, it’s pretty hard to dig in. I also took advantage of some Sprue Goo to fully attach him to the base, as some of the glue points in MCP models tend to be a little weak.
Unlike Alec, I tend to use mounting putty, but you have to be careful it’s not too warm, or else your model will fall right over, which happened more times than I’d like to admit.
Nova
Alec: Nova is a pretty straight-forward character to build, with no small or delicate parts you have to worry about bending or breaking. As I do with all my Marvel: Crisis Protocol figures, I paint the figure separate from the base to paint the colors as neatly as possible.. Using an old base, I affixed Nova to it with some Gorilla Glue Tough & Clear Mounting Tape. The tape keeps the figure held in place very well and it’s easy to remove once I am done painting.
After he was done gluing, I used some Sprue Goo to fill in the gaps, and a mold line remover tool on the larger flat areas on his legs and helmet. He was built and cleaned up in about 30 minutes.
PRIMING
As expected, assembly and priming is easy!
Randy: I’ve been really interested in priming in white, as I’ve been a Chaos Black user with a zenithal primer that I typically dry brush on the model. I picked up a can of White Scar and used that to prime all of Yondu.
Alec: I primed Nova with a zenithal prime on them, using a base coat of Rustoleum Flat Gray and a top coat of Army Painter White Primer. I use Rustoleum Flat Gray for nearly all of my MCP models. It’s cheaper than the name-brand black primers, and is very flat. White Primer is a different story, though. I use Army Painter Matte White Colour Primer or Citadel White Scar Primer because I have found other brands to splatter or be very inconsistent with the spray (leaving areas pooled or thinned.) In general terms, getting the majority of a color for a model applied via a rattle can or airbrush saves a lot of time.
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ALEC’S PAINTING TIP: Once I finish priming models, I affix them and their bases to some large medicine tubes with some double-sided tape or poster tack. There are official miniature holders and handles out there, but I just use these since they’re cheap, and sometimes I need multiples for batch painting. These or any holder allow me to easily hold the models without cramping my hands as well as turn the models freely to get a good angle to paint certain parts or areas.
MODEL PAINTING
Yondu
When I approach a painting project like this, I tend to look at the box art, and then try to approximate my paints to the model. Ultimately, I end up with a slightly different look, but I think it’s a great exercise to learn color, contrast, and to try to level up your skills, because artists who do box art tend to be really good at painting.
My other approach to this was to utilize Speedpaints in order to establish quick colors and help me block out areas on the model. I also tend to use less paint and rely more on building my own colors out of a smaller palette.
Base tones:
White primer will end up in brighter colors, but ensure you’ve got good layers in place!
For the larger parts of the model, I used Magic Blue for the body, Blood Red for the head fin and shoulder pads, Fire Giant Orange for the underpants, Pallid Bone for the wraps, Hardened leather for the belts, Zealot Yellow for the bow and arrow, and lastly, Polished Silver for his shin guards & base box, all from the Army Painter speedpaint range. I found these colors all gave me a great starting point, and with many I just needed one pass on the model.
The energy swoop (yes, I’m calling it a swoop) was Doomfire Magenta from the Citadel Contrast range…I find it to be very pigmented, which helped. 2 passes, and I was set.
For the cloak, I found myself struggling. Do I use the same speedpaint, and have it match the leather belt? Or do I go and make something different? Something a bit more ruddy? So I busted out the wet palette, and used a mix of Ruddy Umber (Army Painter / AP), Ice Yellow (AK 3rd Gen), Pure Black (AK artist grade), and Titanium White (Golden) to create a mixture of dark to light ruddy brown tones. This gives me a mid tone that I will play with later to create shadows and highlights.
For his dark leathers, I mixed more of the Pure Black into the Ruddy Brown, and a smidge of Fiery Vermillion, one of my favorite colors from Army Painter’s John Blanche line. This gave me a distinct dark leather tone that, even when lightened up, won’t clash with the other tones.
To wrap up the shoulder pads, I relied on Cobalt Metal on top of the Blood Red. Cobalt metal is a colder metallic and it’s very pigmented, so the cool blue color works well with the red, along with great coverage. Maybe 2 passes?
Recess Shadowing:
Staring at the midtone I had created for Yondu’s coat, I knew I needed to knock it down, but how? I didn’t want to use a wash, as I needed the paint to not just flow into crevices, so I decided to experiment. Taking Light Leather from the AK Quick Gen line, I diluted it with some Citadel Contrast Medium, as I knew that the two paints were similar (both contrast) and I had a feeling the medium wouldn’t break the paint…I was correct, and I thinned the paint down, using a 3:1 ratio of thinner to paint. The end result was a tint that, when brushed on the model, flowed into channels -creating shadows- and stayed on the flat surfaces -creating a tint which darkened the leather.
Recess shading is a great technique to make shadows pop!
On the underside of the cloak, I mixed a more Pure Black mixture of Ruddy Brown, which gave me a shadow tone that I painted into the flat shadow areas. A little messy, but this piece is for the table, so I gave myself the grace of not going hardcore into a part of the model no one will ever see.
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RANDY’S PAINTING TIP: Give yourself a break sometimes when working on a model and remind yourself that you’re doing this for you, not for the internet.
On the shin guards, I brushed some Nuln Oil (Citadel) onto the lower parts of the guard. This helps simulate some shadow. On the metallic box, I used Nuln Oil, Blue Tone (Army Painter), and a smidge of Dwarf Flesh (AK Quick Gen), thinned with contrast medium. This gave me some fun shadow colors that when applied to metallics, add more character.
Lastly, I added some Grimdark Shadow, which is a great dark green/brown mixture from Army Painter to the wraps. They helped knock down the brightness of the Speedpaint.
Highlights:
Now, the real work begins, where I have to make decisions about where light hits, what should have attention paid to it, and how much effort I need to put into the model. In this stage, it’s very easy to oversaturate the model with highlights, causing the eye to go everywhere. So I made the decision that Yondu’s face and big sculpted chest needed the biggest highlights.
I started with Hydra Turquoise, a dark greenish blue tone from Army Painter, and I mixed in Mossy Green, a desaturated cool green tone in order to bring up my steps. I did this because Blue/Green and desaturated Greens tend to be a tertiary jump in the color wheel. This provides a richer depth of tone in the highlight vs. just adding white to your mixture. And when I wanted to desaturate my tone, I used Brainmatter Beige, which is a light yellowish grey. It’s a warmer color, which I think is a better way to desaturate. The yellow in it helps accentuate the highlight.
Look at that chest! A bold highlight can be the focus of a model.
After wrapping those highlights up on his skin, I moved on to the pants.
I started with Flickering Flames (AP), and then moved up a few steps by adding in Moonbeam Yellow, which is one of the best Yellow paints you can find on the market (thanks, Army Painter), and finished with a little Ice Yellow (AK).
The dark leathers were also an easy task. I didn’t want a whole lot of attention paid to these, so I mixed my base tone of Ruddy Brown and Pure Black with a little of the Brainmatter Beige, bringing up my paint 1 or 2 steps. Nothing too special because we don’t really need eyes on Yondu’s quads…that’s also a reminder for me to go have leg day.
The light leathers needed some scratches, so my original base tone of Ruddy Umber with a little bit of desaturation from Titanium white gave me the scratches that I needed.
Metallics are easy to highlight, and all you need is Shining Silver, or another super bright metallic. This was used on the edges of the shin guards, the shoulder pads, and the edges of the box. I also painted a little ocular highlight on the shin guards. It’s noticeable if you move the model around, so in a way, it’s a little bit for me.
The yellow highlights are almost something you don’t need, but I like having them. Moonbeam Yellow + Ice Yellow brought me up to the level I was looking for. I used the same mix on his necklaces.
For the wraps, a little Brainmatter beige helped bring out small highlights, keeping in mind to not draw away from that big beautiful chest.
And then, the energy swoop. This is where a solid Titanium White is so useful. By adding tiny amounts of it to Doomfire Magenta, I created a nice gradient of color which ultimately got me to pure white, but only in small parts. Remember, a little goes a long way.
Nova
Atomic Mass Games has a wonderful turnaround image on the page of their figures, usually at the bottom of the expansions page, which makes for a very handy painting guide. I am using only the paints found in both Cosmic Sets as well as some colors from the Pro Acryl Base Set.
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Alec Painting Tip: I typically start with ‘color blocking’: a technique where I apply the mid-range of the color I want to use through contrast/speed-paints, washes, and sometimes base paints. Normally, I do all of my color blocking first before going back in and doing the detailing. I worked in various sections, experimenting with blends and colors to see if I liked the tones. I usually start with the lightest tones first, like yellows and whites, and then work down the range to the darkest tones. Lastly, I do the work for the bases, whether the figures are on them or separately.
Face
Richard Ryder isn’t showing a lot of skin, but it’s important nonetheless. I used a blend from Slate Grey for the shadows, Peach Flesh for the midtones, and just the tiniest bit of Bold Titanium White for the highlights.
Helmet & Yellow Armor
Using just the yellows and browns in the set, I wanted to try a little non-metallic metal for the golden armor bits. I used Burnt Umber for the darker areas, building up with Orange Yellow and Golden Yellow, and finally highlighting only the smallest portions with Bold Titanium White. After adding in the blue uniform, I realized I needed to push those golden highlights even further so make them stand out more
Blue Suit
Starting with the darkest blue, I built up the highlights based on where the light was hitting the top of the model.
The blue suit covers 90% of the model, including the spandex for his legs and the faux-armor on his chest and back. This gave me a lot of different angles and shapes to work with, which was a lot of fun. I applied two thin coats of the Dark Navy blue before adding in Payne’s Grey Wash. From there, I highlighted the high points on the legs/feet and armor with Dark Navy Blue, Blue, and Bright Green Blue. I didn’t want to add any white in just so I didn’t wash out the gold highlights. Bright Green Blue did the work to help highlight the right fist and left leg.
Red Nova Corp Logo
A little red goes a long way!
Less is more, and red can be a lot. I blended up from Black Red to Bold Pyrrole Red to Red Orange to make the star shape pop, using more of the Red Orange on the helmet and more Black Red on the back logo.
Blue Energy Effects
I made sure all of the energy effects were a solid white
This was the trickiest section. Normally, with something like this, I would definitely utilize a glaze or a contrast paint to blend the white to blue. However, sticking with paints only found in sets, I used Bold Titanium White with just the tiniest dab of Blue to make a very thin blue glaze. I mixed the paints together on my wet palette and used a acrylic medium to thin them down without sacrificing the pigment.
After many, many layers of blue glaze and white highlights, I created a nice cosmic effect.
Basing
Yondu
Randy: I will admit, I find the MCP bases to be a little boring at times, but I have a pretty standard recipe. Prime black, hit it with a drybrush of a few different grays (either cool or warm, go hog wild), and then use a wash to unify it. If you’re feeling spicy, use some pigments to add some dust. I use an AK Interactive Flat Black marker to paint the rim, as it’s EASY with a marker.
Nova
Alec: Echoing Randy, the standard four, 35mm bases provided can get really boring and repetitive to paint. I also have a standard recipe that I use for each of my city street bases, which I was able to replicate with the AMP colors. I primed the base using Rustoleum Flat Gray Primer. I painted, unevenly, dabs of the Cool Grey around the base and then did two medium coats of a mixture of Petroleum Brown Wash and a few small dabs of Coal Black (I mean, very, very small). After that dried, I did some light drybrushing using the Cool Grey, focusing more on the cement cracks. Finally, I painted the rim of the base using Coal Black.
SEALING
Alec: As I do with all of the models I paint that I also play, I apply a protective clear coating over the paint. This helps preserve the paint on the model and keeps oils from the hands from rubbing off the paint as you continuously touch the models during games. There are many different kinds of clear varnishes to use, but I typically use any matte or anti-shine varnishes, as satin, semi-gloss, and gloss tend to distort the colors of the models (not to mention that most models aren’t supposed to be shiny).
Brands that have been reliable for me are Krylon Matte Clear Spray, Rustoleum Matte Clear Coat, which is slightly glossy, and Testors Dullcote, although the latter can be expensive and difficult to find. For a coat with no shine that really enhances the colors, I use AK Interactive’s Ultra Matte Varnish, applied with an airbrush.
Randy: I brush on the Ultra Matte because I get easily irritated with an airbrush.
FINAL
Yondu
When I started this project, I was intimidated. I wasn’t a fan of painting it in subassembly, and I’ve spent the last 2 weeks working on the sculpting side of the hobby, so I also felt a little rusty. This was also my first experience really utilizing Speedpaints, and I was happy for the boost it gave me in time. I will also say that once I painted the chest highlights, the model kicked in for me, and I really started to appreciate its sculpt. At the end of the day, I have a perfectly finished model that I am really happy with, and it’ll look solid on the table.
Total paint and assembly time: 4 hours spread over 2 days.
Nova
I was really excited to jump in and paint up Nova and spend some time experimenting on the non-metallic gold. The blue suit was really pretty straight-forward to highlight given how angular the pose and suit accents were. I struggled a little bit with the blue energy glows, just due to the fact I had to mix and make a blue glaze. If I were to do that again, I would utilize a fluorescent paint or a light-blue speed paint instead. I didn’t rush any part of this, and because I had the figure separate from the base, it really made everything go smoothly.
Total paint and assembly time: 4 hours over 1 day.
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Randy and Alec’s Painting Tip: It is so easy to get bogged down in paint details, making sure the colors are “lore accurate,” and that it’s the most perfect piece you’ve ever painted. While those are worthy goals, it’s a great way to get frustrated quickly or down on yourself, leaving you disappointed and the piece unfinished. It’s important to remember that “done is better than perfect.” Not every miniature you paint is going to be a masterpiece, and so it’s ok to not hit that mark. The attempt is going to going to benefit you far more than a completed perfect piece, because whatever you learn painting your piece you will carry forward to the next one and do that much better. Show yourself some kindness and love and be proud of what you painted!
Have you painted your Nova and Yondu box yet? Were you also impressed by Yondu’s chest routine? Let us know! Follow Gaming Trend for more Learn to Paint and Marvel Crisis Protocol articles. We’d love to see how you painted up your models so share your work with us in the comments or find us on Instagram!
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