It’s another Sylvaneth project, but this time instead of fiery, they’re bright green. There’s some overlap in technique with my Charred Grove Sylvaneth but otherwise this take on the woodland spirits is one of bursting, rampant growth rather than burning death. Also central to this, since we’re talking forest spirits, is the green glow from eyes, mouths, and anywhere else that looked appropriate at the time.

Bark

The bark is a simple recipe, or rather, a couple of recipes depending on how dark you want the bark. Since there really isn’t much difference in the outcome, I’ve been using both variations. If you go into the woods, no two trees have identically coloured bark, so why should the tree spirits? Another handy thing about the Sylvaneth is that nature isn’t all precise straight lines, so drybrushing is your friend here, making the whole thing quick and achievable.

Lighter version:

White primer, GW Baneblade Brown all over, wash all over with GW Agrax Earthshade, drybrush GW Ushabti Bone.

Darker version:

White primer (I used white on my testers but you can get away with grey or black if you want an even darker tone), GW Dryad Bark all over, wash all over with GW Agrax Earthshade, drybrush GW Baneblade Brown, drybrush GW Ushabti Bone.

In both versions, I experimented with adding a bit of GW Coelia Greenshade in a few random places while the Agrax Earthshade was still wet to add a little more subtle colour variation.

The Secret Weapon

I only found out about this stuff recently and have used a load of it since. It’s Moss Effect by Dirty Down. It’s gloopy, so you need to stir it up and shake it a whole lot before using it, but it’s otherwise a little bottle of magic. I paint it directly from the pot onto the miniature anywhere I think moss might grow – recesses, near the base of trees/tree spirits, etc. A few random splodges of this stuff can go a long way, and even smooth out some of the chalkiness you occasionally get with drybrushing.

The Cool Stuff: Glowing Eyes

There’s nothing difficult about these, as such, beyond taking your time and making sure you have a decent point on your brush (not necessarily a really small brush – I did all this with a size 1). Colour the eyeball and recess around it with GW Caliban Green. When that’s dry, cover that same area with GW Warpstone Glow (this looks a bit better on a dark green than it does over any wash or base colour that’s leaked onto this area). Paint the raised eyeballs with GW Moot Green, leaving the GW Warpstone Glow in the recess. Then paint a thin line of GW Moot Green on the raised area around the eye. The next two bits are quite subtle but definitely worth it. Paint half the eyeballs, closest to the middle, with Vallejo Yellow Green, then just add a dot of GW Flash Gitz Yellow onto the eyeballs closest to the middle.

It’s pretty much the same around the mouths. Working from the outside in, go from darker to lighter green then to yellow when you get to the centre. The thin line around the mouths is still GW Moot Green.

The Cool Stuff: Vines and Grasping Hands

I’d pictured the hands and ‘hair’ of the dryads as though it was rapidly growing on the spot, sharpening to points, which is why it’s such a bright green instead of matching the bark. These use exactly the same recipe as the eyes but blended from dark to light the closer to the end:

GW Caliban Green -> GW Warpstone Glow -> GW Moot Green -> Vallejo Yellow Green -> GW Flash Gitz Yellow

Blending into the brownish bark takes a little work too, so I advise mixing 50/50 GW Caliban Green with the bark base colour to help that transition. As always with ‘dry’ blends (letting the previous coat dry before the next), lots of very thin coats is the way to go.

The Rest

The only other bits to note are the leaves and base. The leaves are a simple GW Elysian Green base coat, GW Coelia Greenshade wash, and edge highlighted with thin lines diagonally across the leaf with GW Ogryn Camo.

The base is a mix of products. Part of it is a combination of cork, grit, static grass, and what looks like coloured string and paper. This came pre-mixed in a bag from Serious Play. Unfortunately that company no longer seems to be in business. You could likely mix some up with the above recipe though.

The flowers and tufts are made by Gamers Grass and are much more readily available.

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