Welcome to another step by step painting guide, this time I've chosen a very exotic unit, the Moroccan Goumiers of the French army in the Second World War. The miniatures themselves are from the Artizan Designs range. These are fantastic miniatures and are a pleasure to paint. These troops dressed in traditional tribal robes, with the coloured patterns denoting which tribal area they were from. So, there are a variety of patterns and colours you could choose from when painting your Goumiers. The striped pattern does look intimidating at first, but breaking it down into steps really helps. Let's see how to do it.

Step 1 - Coloured spray primer

First step is to undercoat your miniatures with 'English Infantry' spray from the Plastic Soldier Company. This is essentially the same colour as VJ921 English Uniform and I used this colour from the bottle to paint into any areas the spray missed.

Step 2 - Base colours 1

Leaving the robes the colour of the spray undercoat. Use the paints below to apply the base colours.

Guns, dark leather webbing and boots: Matt Black (Army Painter)
Helmets: Olive Grey (Vallejo)
Turbans & scarves, sleeves and trousers: Iraqi Sand (Vallejo)
Skin: Beige Brown (Vallejo)
Canvas webbing: Khaki (Vallejo)

Step 3 - Base Colours 2

Use the paints below to apply the second round of basic colours.

Gun stocks: Flat Brown (Vallejo)
Gun barrels and and metallic parts: Gun Metal (Army Painter)
The dark leather (webbing, boots): Rhinox Hide (Games Workshop)
The bases: Brown Sand (Vallejo)

Step 4 - Stripe pattern

Now comes the tricky bit, the stripped pattern on the robes. This is the one part of the process worth taking careful time with. The stripped robes are what give these guys their distinctive look, so it's worth it. There are many patterns I have seen, but I am trying to keep this one simple but eye catching.

These patterns seem daunting when you look at a finished model, but break it down into steps and you can do it! Start with some thick vertical stripes coming down the robe using a dark brown (Rhinox Hide here). Use a brush that holds a good point so you can keep them clean and neat. Make sure to add a little water to the paint to keep it smooth as you apply. Space these dark stripes out so you don't end up covering the light brown! I tend to begin the stripes at the top and paint down, so you will be beginning the stripes at the waist, shoulder or head depending on what area of the model you are applying it too. This helps you paint smooth strokes naturally.

After this, take your smallest, fine detail brush to apply the thin light strips like on the right pic there. I used Vallejo Dark sand, but any 'bone' colour will work. Carefully paint a thin line down the sides of each dark brown strip. Again, use slightly watered down paint and take your time! You'll get better with each attempt.

Like I say, take the time and be patient, it's worth it! This is the most difficult stage, the rest is easy once you have the stripes on.

Step 5 - Shading wash

I used Agrax Earthshade wash by Games Workshop out of the bottle to give the entire model a wash. I also then applied a second wash of black, using Dark tone by Army Painter, on the guns and helmets.

Step 6 - First highlights

Use the paints below to apply highlights to the base colours. For the robes there are three colours to highlight.

Robes (main): Khaki Grey (Vallejo) over the English Uniform (Vallejo)
Robes (dark stripes): Doombull Brown (Games Workshop) over the Rhinox Hide (Games Workshop)
Robes (light stripes): Pale Sand (Vallejo) over the Dark Sand (Vallejo)
Helmets: Olive Grey (Vallejo), then some Brown Violet (Vallejo)
Turbans, scarves, sleeves and trousers: Dark Sand (Vallejo)
Canvas webbing: Khaki (Vallejo)

Step 7 - Final highlights

Use the paints below for a final highlight.

Robes (main): Khaki (Vallejo)
Robes (dark stripes): Tuskogor Fur (Games Workshop)
Robes (light stripes): Nothing needed
Helmets: Nurgling Green (Games Workshop)
Gun Stock: 70/30 mix of Flat Brown (Vallejo) + Dark Sand (Vallejo)
Turbans, scarves, sleeves and trousers: Dark Sand (Vallejo)
Canvas webbing: 70/30 mix of Khaki (Vallejo) + Dark Sand (Vallejo)
The skin: First use Beige Brown (Vallejo) and a little Dark Sand (Vallejo) to highlight the nose, fingers, chin, cheeks and any other raised area. Then add a little more Dark Sand (Vallejo) to the mix and highlight again. Any beards (which are black) are then highlighted with German Grey (Vallejo)

If you are keen to paint the eyes I always use a fine detail brush and start by painting a tiny white horizontal strip. I find it easier to turn the model upside down and on it's side for this. I then apply a dot of black paint as the pupil straight on. Be careful not to use to much paint or you'll cover the white.

Step 8 - Finishing touches

Last up, give your bases a drybrush highlight in three layers. Start with Brown Sand (Vallejo), then Dark Sand (Vallejo) and finally Pale Sand (Vallejo). You can touch up the base rims with the Brown Sand (Vallejo) after this. It's a good idea to varnish your Goumiers at this stage as without it metal figs tend to chip over time. I always use Testors Dullcoate.