Hellstrom Paint Process – My Fiery Journey! 🔥🎨

Heya amazing C27 community! 👋

I’m excited to share my latest painting adventure: Daimon Hellstrom! This mini was a fun (and sometimes frustrating) challenge, and I can’t wait to give you a detailed look at the process. And yes, there were a few hilarious fails along the way—like my head blocking the camera and my battery dying mid-paint session—but hey, it’s all part of the journey, right? 😅 sure sure sure

Filming Mishaps & Lessons Learned

This was my first time trying to record myself painting, and I quickly realized it’s trickier than it looks! There are moments where my big ass head gets right in the frame, and then, to top it off, my camera ran out of battery halfway through. So, there’s a big jump in the footage. Sorry about that! I’ve learned a lot and will be better prepared next time, but I hope you still enjoy what you can see! My big head blocking only lasts a few minutes, I hope you can check it out still!

References & Planning:

I started by using our Base Colors guide and hunting down more Hellstrom references online. Pinterest was a treasure trove for images, especially for lighting and OSL (object source lighting) ideas. I compiled everything in PureRef (a fantastic free tool for organizing references: PureRef).

My vision was to create dramatic lighting, with the trident casting a bright glow on Hellstrom’s upper body. To get the technique down, I watched Squidmar’s Masterclass on YouTube (seriously, I watched it so many times): Squidmar Masterclass.

To visualize the lighting, I borrowed my wife’s phone flashlight, aimed it where I thought the trident’s glow would hit, and took reference photos, adding them to my PureRef setup.

Painting Process:

• Priming & Shadow Mapping:
  I started by priming the model with Citadel Chaos Black spray, followed by a zenithal highlight using White Scar from above. I went a bit heavy with the white, but it helped me visualize the lighting. Next, I used Kantor Blue to map out the shadows, referring to my flashlight photo for guidance. This set the foundation for the strong contrast I wanted.

  

• Skin Tones:
  I laid down Bugman’s Glow as the base skin tone. To create shadow transitions, I mixed Bugman’s Glow with Kantor Blue and carefully blended it into the deeper shadowed areas. For highlights, I used Kislev Flesh, layering it onto the raised portions of the skin. I blended Kislev Flesh and Bugman’s Glow for a smooth transition and finished with a glaze of Guilliman Flesh on the under sections to add warmth and unify the tones. Then finally, I added Flash Gitz Yellow on the top of the chest to show when the trident's glow would hit.

  

• Glow & Trident:
  I painted the trident starting with Evil Suns Scarlet at the tips, transitioning to Averland Sunset and then Flash Gitz Yellow middle section where his hand intersects. I try dry brushed the trident's edge areas to unify the tones. Using the same yellow, I dry brushed the chest and upper body to create the glow effect. This step was crucial for establishing the object source lighting effect that on him.

• Hair & Fiery Effect:
  Hellstrom’s hair was painted using Flash Gitz Yellow as the bottom sections, with Averland Sunset in the middle sections and Evil Suns Scarlet at the tips. I dry brushed Evil Suns Scarlet across the whole hair to tie the colors together, making it look like a fiery cascade.

• Cape:
  I began with Flesh Tearers Red as the base color over the Kantor Blue shadows already present. On the raised folds, I applied Khorne Red, and for the highest highlights, I dry brushed Evil Suns Scarlet. I also added some Averland Sunset dry brushing on the inner cape to reflect the glow from the trident.

• Braces & Armor Details:
  The braces were highlighted with Fenrisian Grey where light would hit only and left the Kanto blue untouched with a harsh transition line between the two. I added Dawnstone for brighter highlights and finished with thin edge highlights using White Scar. This added a subtle metallic look that didn’t overpower the rest of the mini.

• Boots:
  For the boots, I mixed Kantor Blue with Averland Sunset to create a gradient to place where the light would hit only as well. I then layered Averland Sunset on the larger highlights and Flash Gitz Yellow on the smaller ones. Screaming Skull was used for the final, thinnest highlights, giving the boots a lighting effect where the light would only hit.

  

• Pants:
  The base was painted with Black Templar, but it looked too dark and lost the main red color scheme, so I added Khorne Red to the highlights to bring some warmth and depth. I also applied very thin layers of red across the pants to create a cohesive look.

• OSL Adjustments:
  I noticed the shadows were getting lost after applying the base colors, so I reapplied Kantor Blue, thinning it out for smooth transitions. I used Flash Gitz Yellow to dry brush the illuminated areas, enhancing the OSL effect.

• Base:
  I painted the ground with Kantor Blue first on section of shadows first then with Gore Grunta Fur overall and gave it a wash of Nuln Oil to deepen the shadows. The flames were painted with Khorne Red as the base, layered with Averland Sunset in the middle, and highlighted with Flash Gitz Yellow. I dry brushed the entire base with Screaming Skull to catch the edges better. I also dry brushed Evil Suns Scarlet onto the sides of the boots to tie everything together.

• Final Touches & Cleanup:
  I revisited the cape, adding Kantor Blue to deepen the shadows, and thinned out layers to blend them with the back highlights. I added Dawnstone and White Scar to clean up edges and refine the details. Finally, I went through the entire mini to touch up any areas that needed more definition or color correction.

Final Thoughts & What’s Next:

Painting Hellstrom was an absolute blast, and despite the filming hiccups, I’m happy with how he turned out! Recording myself was definitely a learning experience, but I’m determined to get better at it for future projects. I still think the boots could use some work though.

Next up is Cable, and I’m super excited to try out new techniques with my freshly bought paints!

What are you working on right now? Drop a comment or share your WIP in the #paint-wip channel on Discord—I’d love to see your creations and chat about painting techniques!

Thanks so much for being an incredible community and supporting my journey into painting minis. Your feedback and support mean the world to me!

Cheers,
Gen