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This tutorial shows how to paint some effects, weathering and battle damage on a futuristic tank, to make a sci-fi vehicle look impressive on the battlefield. A Warhammer 40k Primaris Repulsor tank has been used for this example, adding some extra bit customizations for Space Wolves from the Spellcrow company.

This tank was published in White Dwarf magazine in December 2020 (# 459) , which was an honor for me.

Let’s Start!

Starting Point

Before starting with the effects and battle damage, we will previously paint the entire tank. This will be the starting point. If you want to see how to paint a Space Wolf vehicle armor in this high contrast style, in this blog you will find several tutorials where I explain how I paint them.

Scratches

Using a mixture of Model Color German Camouflage Black Brown 70.822 and Model Color Black 70.950, we simulate some effects such as scratches, bullet holes, etc.

Here we can see that wolf scratches have also been added, to give a personal touch to this Space Wolves tank

Using a mixture of Model Color Sky Blue 70.961 and Model Color White 70.951, the lower parts of these scratches are painted. Pure white can be used in some corners to enhance the contrast.

We will repeat the same process, but in the yellow parts of the tank, we will use a mixture of Model Color Ice Yellow 70.858 and Model Color White 70.951.

Vallejo Environmet

To generate another type of weathering effect, using a piece of sponge and Vallejo Environment Rust Texture 73.821, we will recreate more damage, emphasizing corners and areas of higher wear.

To add an icy touch to both the base and the underside of the vehicle, Vallejo Environmet Snow 73.820 is used.

Finally, theVallejo Environment Slimy Grime Dark 73.822 and Slime Grime Light73.823 references are used on random parts of the snow.

If we want to go further and include more weathering effects, pigments could be used in dry to generate dust and dirt effects, or in wet to generate other effects of dirt and damage.

Final result