Painting Soviet Infantry
When it comes to painting Soviet infantry, I like to paint them fast because they get removed from the board fast. In all seriousness, it’s a horde style army so efficiency is the key. I did make a video about painting these with some minor changes from this article. That video can be found here.
Zenithal
I start with a black undercoat and then spray white from the top. This creates a zenithal highlight. I achieve this with an airbrush but a drybrush or rattle can will work as well.
Base Coat the Uniform
Next, in order to get things done quickly, I go with Sand Golem, which is a Speed Paint from The Army Painter. Give the uniform a quick once over and you don’t need to be neat here. It’s ok if the paint spills in other places because we’ll cover that up in a later step.
So, why Speed Paint? Well first it’s fast and you’ll notice it acts as a base coat and a shade/wash all in one. With typical painting you apply your base layers, then a shade or wash, then bring the colors back to life with additional layers and highlights. Skipping the wash step skips a lengthy drying time.
Drybrush
Next, let’s drybrush by taking Vallejo Khaki Grey, wiping the majority of the paint off on a paper towel, and applying it to our model. This technique will bring the uniform to the color we desire while leaving the shade in the recesses.
Repeat this step with a lighter drybrush of Vallejo Iraqi Sand. The goal with this lighter drybrush is to catch the extreme tips of the uniform.
Lesson Learned: Go heavy on the Khaki Grey drybrush. Call it more of an overbrush. If you don’t, the uniform will look very dark as seen below.
Boots and Weapons
You can see the highlights now on the uniform with the shading in the recesses. Next, let’s tackle the boots with The Army Painter Speed Paint Grim Black. Once again, this paint will act a a base coat, shade and highlight all in one.
Helmets
For the helmets, I apply Vallejo Reflective Green.
Once complete I’ll apply a brown wash to the helmets such as The Army Painter Soft Tone.
Skin and Wood/Leather Items
For the skin, I apply The Army Painter Speed Paint Crusader Skin. This again, acts as our base and shade. I’ll get the rifle stocks, belts, and wooden handles with The Army Painter Speed Paint Hardened Leather.
Let’s highlight the skin with Vallejo Dark Flesh leaving the Crusader Skin in the recesses. Then Vallejo Flat Flesh on the highest areas such as the cheek bones, nose and chin.
Pouches and Webbing
Next, Vallejo Green Grey on the pouches and webbing. When finished, give them a Strong Tone (Army Painter) shade or dark wash.
Highlights
Give the helmets a drybrush of our Reflective Green from earlier. This will simulate light from above. You can also touch up anything brown with Vallejo Beige Brown and quickly highlight any pouches or webbing with Vallejo Green Grey. You can also gently drybrush some silver onto the weapons but don’t go overboard.
Officers
As a quick note, I used Speed Paint Magic Blue on the officers for a quick blue. Add in any red or gold for his ribbons and accolades.
For basing, I went with Vallejo Earth Texture. This does a great job concealing metal bases such as the officer’s base above. I then followed it up with some static grass.
Follow up with a coat of matte varnish and your soviets are ready for the table! The Soviet horde does take some time due to the sheer numbers of models. The Army Painter Speed Paint helped me speed up the process drastically. You can find out more about this Soviet starter box here.