Warhammer: You’ve Got To Try This Snow & Ice Base Technique

If you’ve ever wanted your basing to look as cold as ice then Games Workshop has an easy tutorial you’ve got to check out.

I’ve painted a lot of bases in my day. I’ve done urban rumble, desert, the traditional grass, and even cracked and dry earth. But one style of base has eluded me. However, this easy to follow tutorial from “Warhammer Community’s High Marshal of Scheduling Darcy” seem simple enough. And the results are too cool not to give it a shot!

via Warhammer Community

“Darcy: I start by covering the entire base in Macragge Blue, before adding some Sotek Green in random patterns, trying to avoid creating any sharp edges. I follow that with some Temple Guard Blue, painting it inside the areas of Sotek Green. Finally, I added small patches of Blue Horror, keeping them inside of the Temple Guard Blue.”

“After that, I apply a nice thick layer of Ardcoat (two coats give a better result if you have the patience), which helps smooth off the surface and make it shiny, as if it were a sheet of highly reflective ice. I then added some Valhallan Blizzard, placing it to break up the lines of the blue I created earlier. Once dry, I add the final touch, a quick wash of Drakenhof Blue, around the edges of the snow.”

This technique is a little time consuming as you’ve got to wait for things to dry — especially that Ardcoat. But the results are really impressive! I wouldn’t have thought to do the final step of adding that edge wash of Drakenhof Blue to the ‘snow’ of the Valhallan Blizzard. This seems like something you could knock out for a unit of 5 or 10 easily as batch at a time. And, as mentioned, it looks really impressive if you’re models are on the darker side as the contrast between them and the basing really makes them pop.

Thanks to Darcy for sharing this secret sauce with the rest of us. I really need to give this one a shot!

To Recap:

• Base – Macaragge Blue
• Layer 1 – Sotek Green
• Layer 2 – Temple Guard Blue (stay inside the Sotek Green)
• Layer 3 – Blue Horror (stay inside the Temple Guard Blue)
• Layer 4/5 – Ardcoat x2
• Texture Layer – Valhallan Blizzard
• Edge Wash – Drakenhof Blue

What do you think of these super chill snow/ice bases? What army do you think would pair well with this style?

Author: Adam Harrison

Writer, Editor, Texas Native, and Austinite for 15+ years, Adam covers all things Tabletop Gaming. Which includes Warhammer 40,000, Age of Sigmar, D&D, Board Games and everything else that involves dice, boards, cards and a table. A hobbyist, player, and collector of miniatures and games, Adam's current obsession are his Death Armies for Age of Sigmar, his Blood Angels and Tyranids for 40k, and his ever growing Arkham Horror: The Card Game Collection.