Introduction to the 74-Z Speeder Bikes
Today, we’re focusing on painting 74-Z Speeder Bikes for Star Wars: Legion, adding detail and color to these iconic Star Wars vehicles.
The 74-Z Speeder Bikes are a fast-moving, high mobility unit for the Galactic Empire faction in the table-top game, Star Wars: Legion.
74-Z Speeder Bike Battlefield Role and Strategy
Their primary role in the battlefield is for hit-and-run attacks, especially toward non-armored infantry forces. With proper maneuvering, they can be positioned to target weak points on armored vehicles.
Strategically, the 74-Z Speeder Bikes are great for flanking and harassing enemy forces, or they can quickly secure objectives in certain game scenarios. Advanced players might use them in a gambit to divert opponents’ attention or resources, creating opportunities for the rest of your army.
Why I Painted 74-Z Speeder Bikes
I painted the 74-Z Speeder Bikes as on ongoing commission project for my dear friend, Courtney. As ever, I feel honored that she appreciates my painting and continues to keep me in her employ to paint her growing Star Wars collection.
There is, of course, a certain level of inspiration. I was pondering what to paint next for Courtney and these caught my eye. Not only are the 74-Z Speeder Bikes a favorite of mine from Return of the Jedi, but I also want to take another crack at painting Stormtroopers after learning some new white armor techniques.
The Painting Process for 74-Z Speeder Bikes
I broke the painting process into three parts: the Stormtrooper, the 74-Z Speeder Bike, and the base.
Paint Colors For Stormtroopers
- Prime White Scar
- Apothecary White
- Abaddon Black
- Nuln Oil
- Stormvermin Fur
Painting the Stormtroopers
I primed the Stormtrooper with White Scar. You could use any cold white primer, but a warm white, such as Wraithbone isn’t recommended.
Next, I used Apothecary White all over the Stormtrooper model. This helps to give some depth to you, as the painter, to differentiate the white armor plates from the black uniform underneath. It also gives some contour and contrast on sections of the armor plates, especially around the boots, knees, chest, and helmet.
The next step is to paint all of the areas of the uniform black. I used a couple of coats thinned Abaddon Black for easy flow and to be as neat as possible. This is going to include the pants, gloves and sleeves, and parts of the helmet. Take extra care around the neck and shoulders.
The next step is to shade all of the black areas with Nuln Oil. After the Nuln Oil dries some highlights can be added using Mechanicus Standard Grey or Stormvermin Fur.
And finally, I used Trooper White from Two Thin Coats, or you can use White Scar, to tidy up any mistakes made from the Abaddon Black. Also, use the white to brighten any flat and raised areas of the armor plates from the Apothecary White contrast process. This will highlight your Stormtrooper as well.
Painting the 74-Z Speeder Bikes
Paint Colors for Speeder Bikes
- Prime Mechanicus Standard Grey
- Mournfang Brown
- Abaddon Black
- Leadbelcher
- Stormvermin Fur
- Ironbreaker
- Karak Stone
- Elysian Green
I primed the bikes with Mechanicus Standard Grey.
The body of the bike and front fins I painted with Mournfang Brown. The seat is painted with Abaddon Black, and all of the mechanics underneath, control panel, handlebar, and footpedals are painted with Leadbelcher. For the bedroll behind the seat, a darker grey, such as Mechanicus Standard Grey or Stormvermin Fur works great.
The entire bike is shaded entirely with Nuln Oil.
A light drybrush of Karak Stone over the Mournfang Brown areas comes next, followed by a very light spot-drybrushing of Elysian Green or Death World Forest in select area of the Mournfang Brown to add forest staining and interest.
The Leadebelcher mechanics can be highlighted with Leadbelcher again, or you can use a brighter silver such as Ironbreaker or Stormhost Silver. I focused on highlighting the tops of metal parts to hint at light sourcing.
Be sure to highlight the handlebars, footpedals, control panel as well!
And finally, the bedroll can be layered back up with the previous dark grey used. Also, the bedroll can be highlighted with Karak Stone.
Painting the Base for 74-Z Speeder Bikes
Paint Colors for Basing the 74-Z Speeder Bikes
- Vallejo Brown Earth texture paint
- Rhinox Hide
- Agrax Earthshade
- Karak Stone
- Elysian Green
I put a thick layer of Vallejo Brown Earth texture paint down and let it dry overnight. As these are display models, I wasn’t worried about the firing arc outlined on the base. If you’re going to use your models for gaming, I would suggest using a hobby knife or scraper to mark the lines on the base through the texture paint.
When the texture paint is dry, I painted the entire surface with Rhinox Hide and followed that up with a healthy layer of Agrax Earthshade.
A drybrush of Ushabti and/or Karak Stone is next – I tried to add variation by drybrushing some parts of the base heavier than other parts. The same is true for Elysian Green or Death World Forest after that. A light drybrushing in varying areas is going to add depth and dimension to your base and give a damp, mossy look to your forest floor. Something to note here is that you’re going to get color variation when you drybrush your green over your darker browns and lighter tans.
The next step is to paint some areas of the base with a lightly thinned PVA glue. This is where you’re going to add your hobby grass. I used a coarser grass to resemble more of vines or ferns according to scale.
And the final step is to add some thinned PVA glue to the base and drop a few hobby leaves on the base. While there are no trees on the base, the dead leaves add the illusion of trees in the environment. The leaves also serve to break up color patterns or patches on the base and add some interest. They bring the setting of your models into a functioning, lively environment.
Some final tufts of grass or flowers as the finishing touches to the model. The color you use for the tufts can be important when you’re trying to compliment you color scheme on your model. For black and white stormtroopers on brown and metal speeder bikes, the potential color selection is fairly broad!
Detailed Look at Painting 74-Z Speeder Bikes
And there we have our 74-Z Speeder Bikes. These models were super fun to paint because they have an easy color scheme. It’s a great opportunity to work on brush control alternating between areas of black and white.
Also, the 74-Z Speeder Bikes are in inspiration to paint because of their iconic scene in Return of the Jedi, but also because of their potential gameplay options and exciting strategies you can employ on the gaming table.
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