Want to make a Diorama set on the Mechanicus Forgeworld of Mars? Want to make your space marines look like a snapshot taken straight from Dune or an appropriately named Andy Weir novel? Look no further. Games Workshop themselves have provided, in their benevolence, a shortcut to quick and dirty Martian terrain bases.
This, of course, comes as one of the many options accessible through the use of their 'Technical Paint' range (formerly named 'Texture Paints'). Look to this tutorial as a quick and easy walkthrough to making your own bases and terrain themed around the red planet.
While the Black Templars already get a few options for fighting psykers ranging from the most dignified and trained Eldar Farseers, right down to the explosively-challenged Ork Weird-Boys, in the form of relics and warlord traits, a lot of them aren't worth taking unless you know you're up against a psyker-heavy meta (at least in my experience). As such, Greyfax's 'Psyk-Out Grenades' and 'Comdemnor' boltgun, as well as her 'Psyocullom' and 'Indomitable' abilities, make her an excellent threat to any psyker thrown at you.
Anyway, I digress. This is a post about basing, not a Greyfax appreciation post (Step on me). As you would expect from a basing tutorial. The first step is to decide which base to use. For my example, I have used a standard 32mm base designed to comfortably fit one of my many Black Templars infantry. It sounds obvious enough but you should take the base size you use into great consideration as each of the Technical paints will set you back roughly £5 and you'll need both Martian Ironearth and Martian Ironcrust for these bases to achieve the full effect. You don't want to be laying this stuff on too thick or you'll be making a trip back to the LGS.
Before you start laying on the paint, you may consider creating some sort of rocky outcrop or similar crags from chunks of cork or similar material. This option is entirely optional and I typically only really reserve it for characters and larger bases like Dreadnoughts or Knights but it's entirely up to you. Just blob some superglue onto your chunk of chosen material and press it firmly onto the base. Apply generously and give it a few minutes to dry and really take a firm hold then you can begin laying on the technical paint.
Begin with Martian Ironcrust, laying it on roughly 2mm thick with a small spatula-like tool or old brush. The rounded end of a paintbrush handle can also work for this. Otherwise you can acquire various files and spatulas from places like Amazon, The Army Painter and Games Workshop. Once the base is fully covered, place the flat edge of your spatula down on the base and mess around with the technical paint. Martian Ironcrust contains tiny beads of plastic that will bond and set in just about any position you leave them in so have fun indenting, lifting and depressing them to your liking.
Important Note: Ironcrust is still paint, as such it can chip or may appear slightly transparent if applied thinly. I recommend that you basecoat your base in a similar red or brown town (Tuskgor Fur from GW seems to be the closest colour I can find to the Martian Technical paints). This should help hide chipping later in the model's life.
Be sure to leave some low flat areas in your base if you can. This is where we'll put the other technical paint, Martian Ironearth (very unique naming schemes as always GW) to provide a cracked and dry appearance. Remember, you can always remove some of the technical paint if you laid on too much. Just wipe your spatula on a nearby rag or paper towel to remove the excess. I also like to run my spatula around the upper edge of the base rim at roughly 45-degrees to create a sort of 'bevel' between the rim and the top surface. This is, however, completely seasoned to taste.
It shouldn't take too long for the Ironcrust to start drying but I would still recommend leaving it for at least 5 or 6 hours, perhaps overnight, to really let it set in. Ironcrust's granular and sedimentary texture/consistency means that if handled a little too rough it can fragment and chip. It's worth saving yourself the repair work for the sake of a short wait. I would also avoid touching it during this time, as tempting as it may be. This could weaken it's bonds and even leave thumb prints, similar to fondling Green Stuff.
However, once it's sufficiently dry, you are free to apply Martian Ironearth in some of the troughs and dips of the terrain to give a sufficiently dried and cracked appearance. An important tip here: You can determine how big the cracks will be by laying on varying consistencies of Ironearth. This will come with practice but a good rule of thumb is that the thicker the paint is applied, the larger the cracks and 'chunks' will appear. It is also important not to lay it on too thick. Doing so could leave the paint flaky and grainy when it dries, leaving to fragments breaking off, especially during the next stage.
Leave the Ironearth to dry for a similar length of time to the Ironcrust then apply as needed and you should end up with something like this. I cannot emphasise enough to let this shit dry or you'll be gluing on flakes of paint and sweeping your LGS floor for weeks.
The final step is bringing out some of those details. While I personally don't do it, you may consider running a thin wash of something like Agrax Earthshade over your base for more realistic tones. As someone who prefers the bright reds to contrast well with the cobalt armour of my Black Templars, I tend not to do this, keeping the tones light. Regardless of if you choose to wash, you should drybrush the base in a bright orange tone of your choosing. I like GWs 'Kindleflame' for this job. It's a drybrush specialised paint and it does a fantastic job bringing out the raised edges and details of the base.
Dry brush generously and you're finished! You may even decide to drybrush the lower portions of your dreadnought's legs for a more convincing appearance of the dust it would kick up. Or perhaps you would directionally drybrush the tires and panels of your vehicles for the appearance of motion. It's yours to do as you will.
As always, all feedback is appreciated. If you have any ideas for tutorials or topics I am all ears. Drop a comment below or message me on my socials.
Happy gaming!
-Ryan
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