#process posting

*Fanny voice*

These models - Ardboyz from the Age of Sigmar Ironjawz range - are a good one for showing off a pretty typical version of my basic tabletop standard. I push the boat out a bit more than this for some things, and I could cut some corners and simplify this down (my Eldar are a bit less in depth), so this is a good baseline - especially as this kit in specific is the runaway winner for my most painted this year, with 25 done and 26-30 in here.

(It's a testament to how marinated I am in this stuff that it only occurred to me this week that "ardboyz" might be read suggestively.)

So, we start with a coat of black primer. (I use other colours for some things but I like the deep shadows and it's a good base for metals, so a good pick here and increasingly often my default.) I'm doing a batch of five - the unit actually comes in blocks of 10, and another five were the last thing through, but this is the right amount for my attention span, so I don't start hating the world, everything in it and paints in specific halfway through doing one colour. Let's not talk about how I learned that from doing a batch of 14 Eldar Guardians. Some fiddlier models get smaller batches and characters (that is, notable individual heroes, rather than large groups of interchangeable troops) I tend to do one at a time, but these come in bulk.

The first thing I do on these is block in the metal. This is a very messy step, so I do it first and expect to just cover up with the rest. I'm drybrushing here - a small amount of paint on a stiff brush, flicked or scraped across to catch the higher points, getting us this nice uneven hammered-iron texture.

Then I block in the other of the two biggest areas on these, and this time the deepest: the skin.

The exaggerated muscles of these models mean I get a lot out from putting in a fair bit of attention on the skin - that'll take up a good chunk of the total painting time, but that's a tomorrow problem.

**1. All Paragons can summon body armor as a universal ability, just like their ability to heal wounds.**

Cons:

-my story becomes more of a Kamen Rider rip off.

-I'd have to give Kithri a slightly different list of feats. Maybe she makes mechs.

-I'd have to retool my idea of a metal made from meteroic iron and the crushed bones of dead holy men.

Pros:

-my story becomes more of a Kamen Rider rip off.

-I can introduce elements of body horror and transformation, something I'm already touching upon with paragons having their appearances change as they grow in power.

-Makes the idea of people running around in powered plate armor in a recovering apocalypse setting less of a logistical nightmare.

-I can frame the armor as both armor and as "an effigy of their god"

-while I prefer more practical armor design, I can sneak in more organic design elements.

2. Paragon armor is built by a third party, but each paragon can "bind" their armor via manipulating their control over the chorus, so they can summon said armor at will.

Cons:

-gotta figure out where the hell they keep the damn things when not in use.

Pros:

-Kithri gets to be more important in her role as the wondersmith.