Iron Hands Praetor – Painting the Relentless
The Iron Hands Praetor is a model that doesn’t ask for flash or flourish. It’s all business — thick plates, exposed cabling, and a stance that feels like it’s carrying the weight of Isstvan on its shoulders. Painting him is less about decoration and more about discipline.
Then there’s the base. If you’re setting him on Isstvan, you’re up against a common problem — black armour on a dark, ashen base. It’s easy for the model to vanish into the scene. The trick is to create separation with temperature. The ground can be cold and dead, but bring in a few warm tones — embers, rust, the hint of firelight catching the lower edges of the armour. Those subtle temperature shifts break up the silhouette and pull the eye back to the model.
The Iron Hands aren’t beautiful in the traditional sense, but they have a kind of weight that’s satisfying to capture. When done right, the model looks heavy — like it belongs on the battlefield, not a shelf.
If you want to dig deeper into how to balance black armour with dark environments, or how to introduce warmth and light into cold palettes, we’ve got full step-by-step guides and video tutorials on the Lil’Legend Studio Patreon.
It’s a hard scheme, but that’s the point. The Iron Hands don’t do easy.
