How I Paint - Terrain - Wooden stakes, palisades and platforms

I’ve really enjoyed painting the Azyrite Ruins and other terrain features for Warcry and Age of Sigmar. I’m starting to build up a solid collection of pieces, and it’s been incredibly rewarding to see the table come to life.

New to painting Warhammer Miniatures → Start here: Warhammer Painting Made Simple

For other miniature painting guides → Faction Painting Hubs

In this article, I’m focusing on the wooden components of my Warcry terrain—specifically, the wooden walkways and barricades. These differ from the wooden planks found on the ruins, as the branches used in these structures still have bark. I wanted these to look subtly different from the planks, and after a bit of experimenting, I’m really happy with the final result. The process is fairly quick, though a few steps require drying time.

 Paints required:

• Skavenblight Dinge
• Dryad Bark
• Wyldwood
• Agrax Earthshade
• Rakarth Flesh
• Deathworld Forest
• Zandri Dust
• Ushabti Bone
• Screaming Skull
• Dawnstone
• Administratum Grey
• Elysian Green
• Seraphim Sepia
• Chaos Black Spray

Start by undercoating everything with Chaos Black Spray. The wooden planks were then basecoated with Skavenblight Dinge. One coat is enough, and it’s fine if the coverage is slightly patchy—it adds to the natural, weathered look. For the wooden logs, I used Dryad Bark to give them a darker appearance that helps differentiate them from the planks.

Apply a wash made from a 2:1 mix of Wyldwood and Agrax Earthshade to all the wood. This mix tones down the glossiness of the contrast paint while letting it settle nicely into the grain and bark textures.

Once the wash had fully dried, I drybrushed all the wood with Rakarth Flesh using a large, round-ended brush (a makeup brush works perfectly). I used circular motions, focusing on the raised areas and grain. I followed this with a light drybrush of Deathworld Forest to bring in subtle green undertones. The sharpened stake points were also painted with Rakarth Flesh at this stage.

Apply a wash of Seraphim Sepia over all the wood. This warms the overall tone and adds depth with a yellowish tint.

Paint the ropes with Zandri Dust, being careful to leave the shaded recesses intact for contrast.

To give the logs a different look from the planks, I lightly drybrushed them with Dawnstone followed by Administratum Grey. This gives the bark a slightly worn, dusty appearance. Try to avoid brushing over the planks, but it’s not a big issue if you catch them lightly.

The sharpened stakes were then painted with a thin mix of Ushabti Bone, applied in straight lines from the base of each stake to the tip. This creates a natural buildup of lighter color toward the point. I then edge highlighted the stakes with Screaming Skull using the side of my brush to gently catch the sharpest edges.

An optional final step is to simulate algae growing on the wooden planks. I used a large round brush to very lightly drybrush Elysian Green in circular motions. Focus this effect on areas that would be less frequently walked on, and avoid high-traffic areas like steps or the center of walkways. This step is best done after all the other painting is complete. Keep it subtle—you’re aiming for just a slight shift in tone. Because these structures are newer and more trafficked than the surrounding ruins, the algae step is entirely optional. If you do include it, focus more on the edges than the center.

Related Articles

• Moss
• Wooden Planks
• White Marble

For more painting guides → Start here

Discussion

How do you paint your terrain?

Do you prefer a more natural look or something cleaner and stylised?

Let me know in the comments, I would be interested to hear what techniques you use.

Happy Hobbying!

If you’re enjoying the content, feel free to follow the blog, it really helps and keeps you updated with new tutorials.

Return to my home page.