Big Spanish Civil War Project Part 8: Moroccan Regulares and the Casa Blanca

 This week I painted the Moroccans - the last full company needed for the project! They weren't as hard to paint as I had expected, but I ran into some interesting challenges when painting their skin. My approach to painting dark skin tones is usually to mix in white skin colours as highlights. The yellow and red pigments in these paints help to make the skin look more realistic and alive. I've found that GW's Reikland Fleshshade wash is really good for achieving this effect on a wide range of skin colours.

The whole group 

Rifle squads

The Command Base. 

I also painted a Spanish hacienda house, which will represent the Casa Blanca or "White House" which was defended by the XV Internationals at Jarama. It's another 3D print. I have another copy of this model which didn't print correctly, so I'm making it into a ruin. During the actual battle the house was bombed by a Republican plane, and the scenario I'm aiming for allows for this to happen. 

In case you haven't noticed, the roof of the house was cobbled together from bits of MDF and cardboard, as it didn't print correctly! It was a lot of fun to make. The model was painted with acrylics, and oils were used to add shading. 

I'm now working on the last squad of POUM Militia. They will be the final infantry for the project. After that I'll paint a Nationalist plane and some command staff, and that will conclude all the miniatures needed for the game. Terrain will be the next priority. 

It feels great to have gotten this far. I was doubtful if I could do everything in this project at the start, as I've never painted both sides of a conflict before, and normally only painting very small groups. I'm looking forward to finishing off the whole thing!