Kill Team: Exodite arrives this weekend, and with it finally come official Exodite models. The included Dossier contains plenty of lore as well as build guides for the Aeldari maiden worlds, making it the perfect opportunity to start a new terrain collection. For this, I grabbed a piece from the old Death World Forest terrain range, and also gave my Webway Gate a fresh coat of paint. Find all the photos and a painting guide in this post.
He who thirsts for official Aeldari terrain
Unfortunately, there’s very little official Aeldari terrain from Warhammer. Several years ago the Aeldari Webway Gate was released, which I of course snapped up immediately at the time. Otherwise, some remnants of Eldar architecture can be found in the (by today’s standards) ancient Death World Forest terrain. Nowadays the Death World Forest terrain is hard to track down, but thanks to a few eBay and classifieds purchases, I managed to find a couple of pieces.
I have to admit that the Death World Forest terrain pieces really aren’t great sculpts. The casting quality and fit are poor, and the design also could be better. The blocky shape of the Eldritch Ruins doesn’t match the flowing forms of the Webway Gate at all, and the shape of the Grappleweed is… weird, but not in a good way IMO. But what can you do, as a long-time Eldar fan, you’re conditioned to grasp at every straw, right?
Taming the alien Grappleweed with a natural paint job
I tried to offset the “alien” shape of the Grappleweed somewhat with a more natural paint job. Here’s my painting guide.
How to paint Aeldari Death World Forest terrain
Primer: Colour Forge Trench Brown (the colour of the primer doesn’t really matter, though any kind of brown is a good choice)
Aeldari statue
Basecoat: Warpaints Air Viper Brown (airbrush)
Zenithal layer: Reaper Master Series Polished Bone (airbrush)
Extra shading: Seraphim Sepia (airbrush)
Drybrush: RMS Polished Bone
Drybrush: Vallejo Game Color Dead White
Trees
Basecoat: Steel Legion Drab
Wash: Old AK Black Night (OoP, you can also use Ratling Grime, Speedpaint Noble Knight, or any black wash mixed with a bit of brown wash)
Sponging: Two Thin Coats Ancient Forest (I used a make-up sponge for this)
Sponging: Vallejo Model Color Pale Brown
Sponge/drybrush: AK Warm Grey
Wash: Speedpaint Noble Knight thinned 1:2 with Scale 75 Instant Color Medium
Drybrush: (Old) VGC Stonewall Grey
Vines
I first gave the vines on the statue a coat of SP Noble Skin to give them a similar colour to the tree, then applied 3 to 4 layers of Gutrippa Flesh to both the vines on the tree and on the statue until I got a fairly opaque result. Then followed 2 layers of thinned Militarum Green, which I also feathered out around the vines to represent moss. After that I drybrushed the vines.
Drybrush: WPF Army Green
Drybrush: WPF Olive Drab
Drybrush: Ionrach Skin
Drybrush: Deepkin Flesh
Glaze: thinned Militarum Green
Moss effect
Additional thinned glazes of Catachan Green and Militarum Green
Canopies
Basecoat: Corax White (I had an old can of Corax White primer for this, otherwise you can use white, which will give a slightly lighter result)
Basecoat: 2 layers of Gutrippa Flesh
Build up gradient towards the outer edges: 2 to 3 layers of thinned Militarum Green
Build up turquoise gradient at the centre: 2 to 3 layers of thinned Akhelian Green
Drybrush: WPF Olive Drab
Drybrush: Ionrach Skin
Drybrush: Deepkin Flesh
Mushrooms
Basecoat: TTC Oxidation Green
Layer: TTC Oxidation Green / TTC Antique Green mix
Layer: TTC Antique Green
Underside: layer TTC Mythic Turquoise, then VMC Pale Blue
Dot highlights: PA White Blue
Final weathering touches and finishing the base
Additionally, I applied orange Abteilung 502 Vietnam Earth pigments to the statue, and Ammo MIG Farm Dark Earth to the bark of the trees. After fixing these with varnish, I also sprayed the lower edge of the terrain piece with thinned Speedpaint Noble Skin and drybrushed the edges with VMC Pale Brown. By making terrain pieces darker towards the bottom (ideally matching the colour of your gaming table, though dark brown always works), you create a more natural transition.
Giving my old Webway Gate a matching refresh
To match the colours of the collapsed Aeldari statue, I also adjusted the colouring of my Webway Gate. I originally painted this quite “flat” back then, here’s my tutorial from that time:
I carefully masked off all the details that weren’t stone with putty and liquid mask, then sprayed additional shading from below with WPA Viper Brown and Seraphim Sepia. I drybrushed again with RMS Polished Bone and VGC Dead White to bring out the edges, applied Vietnam Earth pigment, and sprayed the lower edges with thinned SP Noble Skin.
What’s next for my Maiden World terrain collection
That marks the start of my Maiden World terrain collection. Alongside the Webway Gate and the Eldritch Ruins, I have several more of these Grappleweed trees that I’d like to paint at the next opportunity. But right now, I’m busy painting some Exodites, check out Patreon for WIP updates and teasers. What’s your opinion on the Death World Forest terrain? Have you had the “pleasure” of painting up some of it, too?
Feel free to drop a comment below, I’m also happy to answer any questions on our friendly hobby Discord server. Thanks a lot, and happy hobbying!
