Painting Hellenistic Pikemen Rank and File

Just a quick painting guide for my Seleucid Phalangites. I try to keep things as simple as possible and I depend a lot on the science of the washes to provide the main shading with only a basic highlight of the original colour. Also its a handy future reference for my future pike blocks I have found quite often that I come back to a project and think "how did I do these last time!?". Using a white undercoat was something I had not done since I first started painting in the mid to late 90's. I have become a fan of the Army painter spray paints an basically use the methods from their painting guides the main being undercoating in the dominant or main colour.

Base/undercoat: Army Painter white spray paint

Base colours

Flesh: GW Tallarn Flesh
Tunics: GW Enchanted Blue (thinned down a bit over the white gave them a bit of shading also)
Straps, scabard & sarissa: dark brown
Helmet & greaves: VJ Brass
Sandles: mid/light brown

Washes:

Linothorax: watered down GW Mud wash over the white undercoat
Everywhere else: GW Mud wash

Highlights

Face: GW Elf Flesh
Tunics: GW Enchanted Blue
Straps & scabards: GW Vermin Brown
Sarissa: GW Snakebite Leather in thin varied length lines
Helmet & greaves: VJ Old Gold

Sarissa and Shield

Tip and butt: Black basecoat, GW Chainmail for tip and VJ Brass for butt
Back of push pin shield: GW Vermin Brown

The Seleucid Settlers

I finally got round to completing the last 60x60mm base of Newline Designs 20mm African pikemen for my Seleucid phalanx (see this earlier post for more info). I also decided to add rear rank bases some with command figures, this had something to do with making units deeper for To The Strongest! or Basic Impetus but also I just wanted bigger units! There are quite a few pictures so I apologise for the bombardment. 

So for the "rear bases" there are four bases of 60x30mm with eight figures a piece, two of those bases have command figures included. I placed the command miniatures to the rear so I took a photo of them before basing. The pictures below show the newest painted elements. They were sprayed with Army Painter white which greatly aided me. Also again using drawing pins for the shields shaved a lot of painting time from the project. I have made a painting guide for anyone interested in a step by step account.

The Seleucid Phalanx Assembled

For my Seleucid army I still need to complete the "Silvershields" these are currently being worked on and number half as many miniatures as the phalangites below. In Lost Battles for Raphia and Magniesia, the pikemen who are not the Silvershields are simply named "the Settlers". Although I keep referring to these as "Seleucids" they are from Newline Designs 20mm Ancient Carthage range and are sold as "African Pikemen" they look Hellenistic and I have kept them generic so they may be fielded in any army needing some pike blocks. I went overboard with the picture having arranged the whole lot up and then making them into a 12cm square to take more pics.