The goal is getting closer...

So, you have every part of your Black Unicorn ready? It's time to assemble them, paint them, and you are ready to go.

Painting

I did not paint my Eldar tanks as I would have treated a rank-and-file trooper or a character. I used a different approach.

Black Unicorns are painted with a mirror effect because of gloss paint. This paint scheme is perfectly suited for Eldar tanks, but not everything is painted that way. I'll write about regular painting first, and gloss paint later. Gloss paint can be found in hobby stores. Check that the paint is compatible with plastic models.

The lower part of the Falcon hull, the Falcon's interior, the lower face of the upper part of the Falcon hull and the lower part of the Falcon turret all received regular black paint applied with a spray can. Eldar pilot and cockpit received the same color as well. In fact, everything not belonging to the outer shape of the Black Unicorn received plain Chaos Black.

A symbol to warn off Mon-Keighs...

The lower face of the Black Unicorn turret was painted manually, because cardboard and spray paint don't mix too well. In fact, lower part of cardboard wings was colored with a marker pen.

It's also important to close the hole under the Falcon's pilot cockpit (where the servo-arm is located). The Shuriken Catapults and the mount are glued elsewhere, and if not closed the hole can be seen from the empty pilot's canopy. You are well advised to paint everything black in this area.

Glossy Effect

A Black Unicorn is made of large flat surfaces, perfectly suited for gloss paint. Gloss paint has many advantages over a regular paint scheme; a nice appearance can be achieved within minutes (!) and no need to apply any shadow or highlight. It's quite the opposite, since it's not possible to "correct" anything once the mirror effect is achieved. Using gloss paint requires careful planning, but as long as you are able to hold a spray can you are skilled enough.

The parts to be spray-painted with gloss paint are: the Falcon's hull, the Falcon's ramp, the Falcon's rear bay, the resin Missile Launcher, and the upper side of the Black Unicorn Turret.

Every piece has to be cleaned of flashes, but should ideally be washed and dried as well (except cardboard, duh!). This holds true especially for the resin pieces. Store the parts away from dust. A clean drawer is okay; a closed Tupperware is even better. The smallest hair or grain will be seen if covered by glossy paint.

Also, you should prepare some kind of support to put the components on, using self-adhesive tape and paper tablecloth on a cover or a board for example. It will be used for the spraying session.

When the time is right (a day with no wind outside) you can proceed with the gloss pain. Take out the components from your Tupperware, put them on the support, and go outside to spray everything. Don't go overboard with the spray can, as drops may appear. Beware also not to sink cardboard wings in paint.
As soon as you have finished, get back the painted models in house. Let the paint dry in a dust-free environment, just be careful about the vapors. Afterwards your Black Unicorn will be nearly finished.

If you want you can already proceed with gloss varnish at this stage. It will provide a welcome additional layer of protection.

Be careful with gloss paint because it's near impossible to correct and damage on it. Scratches and damages are here to stay. You can try to correct a little bit with some regular black paint if it gets too noticeable but the repair will be visible.
This being said, my Black Unicorns are tabletop models and they have seen little damage since I created them. I am just careful not to scratch them and clean them with a duster from time to time. Also, avoid putting your greasy fingers on the hull or you'll regret it...

A final word on gloss paint: I've created Black Unicorns but it's up to you to try different colors. I've already seen glossy paint on Eldar models, like this one. I look forward to see Saim-Hann Red Unicorns or Iyanden Blue Unicorns!

Details

Once the gloss paint stage finished, you will be amazed and delighted to see how nice the Black Unicorn looks. Gloss paint is a neutral color reflecting the environment. The hull will mirror lights and scenery around in a nice manner.

Less is more. Although tempting, avoid painting too much details on the hull. Keep your paint scheme minimal. Every brush stroke on a glossy area will fade its effect.

Still, some work is required to add colored details. Details are useful because they give the impression the model has been extensively worked on, which is not the case...

The cockpit is the most important part. It's the area that will catch the eyes. You don't need to go very far to achieve a neat effect: paint the pilot reasonably well and use a variety of colors for the navigation instruments. I also painted the pilot's seat in leather color and the head-up display in metallic shades.
The canopy itself should be painted with utmost attention - because there is no second chance. Well, actually, there is a second chance since you have an extra canopy from the Falcon, but still... The structure should receive the same color than the hull, but forget about glossy paint. If you are in good mood, try to paint the small targeting symbol on the glass (I've painted it yellow).

Never varnish the canopy. Too many people obfuscate it to avoid painting the pilot, but the result is usually a disaster. A badly painted pilot under a clear canopy always look way better.

Next to the pilot, the Sensor received careful paintwork because it's another eye-catching feature.

As you have noticed, the engine intakes received a yellow / orange graduated pattern to add to the "Cobra" style of the tank. The effect is obvious when you look at the Black Unicorn from the top, as in the picture. I didn't tooled anything in those areas; I just painted as if the shape was circling the intake.

You can add a couple symbols using decals. As usual, the best decals are the ones left nearly unnoticed. You can add a lot but they have to blend with the paint scheme to reinforce it. I went with a couple Ulthwé symbols as well as some warning signs, nothing more. I'm not fond of huge Saim-Hann cosmic serpents or large decals of this kind, because it's usually obvious that it's only a decal and because those symbols are bland, decals being only made from a limited range of colors. Such large decals defeat the purpose of gloss paint, too.

If you look carefully at the Falcon's hull, you will notice plenty of access traps and various external controls, energy intakes, and so on. If you take the time to paint some you will get a tremendous effect. Some metallic paint, Red Gore and Scorpion Green for switches, and you are done.

Finally, many of the numerous "bulbs" over the hull received some gold paint. It's a tradeoff resulting in a correct effect and the burden of gem painting.

The Flying Stand

The Black Unicorn is a skimmer and as such deserves some flying stand. You can keep the transparent plastic one or texture and paint it at will. No matter what you decide, you'll have to prepare a specific stand for this model. Its center of gravity is different than the Falcon's and the emplacement designed for the stand is not appropriate.

Since the model is heavy, I didn't want to take any chances - hence I designed a flying stand with four different contact points. I made sure they would fit with the Falcon's hull, although I only glued them at the very last stage.

As per any modeling involving transparent plastic, you have to be careful when gluing additional support columns to the round plastic stand, as any spillover glue will be impossible to clean off. I've used epoxy glue instead of regular polystyrene cement because I've found the latter was not very good with transparent plastic.

Naturally, let the model rest on some support when you let curing the epoxy glue!

The flying stand set in place.

...And it's done!

As I own two Black Unicorns, I had a good taste of my own medicine when I built the second one six months after the first. I was happy to get my notes back, and to have a completed model nearby. It helped me reconsider the production process, what I had overlooked and where I had been just lucky with my first attempt. I had forgotten a lot but I already had this website in mind and I completed my notes to achieve a complete guide.

As explained, the most difficult issue is to set the turret socket properly. This damn plastic stand upside down gave me headaches. Horizontal, not too far forward or backward, and centered accordingly to the Falcon's hull... And a lot of tooling on the servo-arm to achieve rotation. As soon as you manage to get a rotating Black Unicorn turret, modeling the rest is a pleasure. I was so happy toying with my custom turret!

Of course, you can paint the model the way you want. On the other hand, Eldar is the only race whose vehicles can be painted with gloss paint, and you have many pictures of the good results you can expect. It's incredibly fast and the output is amazing, so why not give it a try?

A Black Unicorn in Wave Serpent configuration.

published on 15 Jun 2004