Kyle's Necropolis Hawks Paint Guide — Heavy Intercessors Build Feature
Kyle Builds the Necropolis Hawks Heavy Intercessors
Warhammer 40,000 · Space Marines · Full Paint Guide
Heretical, Kyle knows - but sometimes the same blue Space Marines can get a little boring. He grabbed some of his favourite Heavy Intercessors and finished them in the very striking colours of the Necropolis Hawks, gene-successors to the Raven Guard.
The minis were sprayed white first, with the rest applied by brush. Kyle was fortunate enough to find the chapter icon online and printed his own decals. A wash of Tamiya enamels finished it off - and as Kyle notes, using different panel line wash colours on different surfaces gives far more realistic colour depth than a uniform wash across the whole model.
The full Necropolis Hawks squad.
Front and rear
Strafe move
Two Hawks - front views
The enamel washes that finished it off
How Kyle Painted Them
Full step-by-step breakdown. All products in stock at Wheels & Wings unless noted.
Grey Primer, White Armour, French Army Grey-Blue Body
Primed with Vallejo Mecha Grey, then the entire model painted over with Game Air Dead White. AK French Army Grey-Blue was then applied to everything except the arms, backpack, and helmet - those remain white.
Tamiya Enamel Washes - Three Colours, Three Surfaces
Kyle's key technique here: using a different enamel wash colour on each surface type rather than a single uniform wash. Tamiya Rubber Black thinned with enamel thinner on the grey-blue sections, German Grey on the white armour, and Red Brown on the yellow trim. Applied and then crudely cleaned up for a deliberate, chunky panel line accent rather than a fine modelling finish. The colour variation between surfaces adds far more realistic depth than any single wash could.
Tamiya Enamel Flat Rubber Black (XF-85) - thinned with enamel thinner, applied and crudely cleaned up
Chest Aquila and Shoulder Trim
Yriel Yellow for the chest Aquila and shoulder trim. The Red Brown enamel wash over the top deepens the tone and adds warmth to the recesses.
Bolters, Plasma Coils & Brass Detail
Gun barrels and metal parts in Leadbelcher. Weapon casings in AK Command Green. Ammo casings, skulls, and wings in Brassy Brass, washed with Seraphim Sepia to deepen the gold tone. Plasma coils painted Magic Blue.
Leather Effect
Dark Fleshtone base with an Agrax Earthshade wash to darken and shade the recesses, then highlighted back up with Tan.
Parchment & Red Wax
Khaki base, Seraphim Sepia wash, then highlighted again with Khaki after the wash dries. Red wax on the seal itself.
Soft Seals and Eye Lenses
Soft armour joints and seals painted with Vallejo Heavy Charcoal, then washed with Nuln Oil to deepen and unify. Eye lenses painted with Black Green Ink for a deep, glassy effect.
Skulls, Cork & Grimy Stone
Built up with Citadel Skulls and 2mm cork sheet for texture and height variation. Grey Mecha Primer as the base, drybrushed with Buff, then washed with Mummified Grime Speedpaint to add age and grime.
The Finished Squad
Necropolis Hawks Heavy Intercessors, complete.
The full squad.
Front views
Strafe move
The Heavy Intercessors kit and all paints used in this guide are in stock at Wheels & Wings Hobbies in Toronto, available online with Canada-wide shipping.
Shop the Kit →Recent Posts
-
Kyle's Necropolis Hawks Paint Guide — Heavy Intercessors Build Feature
Wheels & Wings Hobbies · Miniature Paint Guide Kyle Builds the Necropolis Hawks Heavy Intercessor …May 22, 2026 -
Kyle's Tyranid Prime Paint Guide — The Velobsteraptor
Wheels & Wings Hobbies · Miniature Paint Guide Kyle Builds the Tyranid Prime: The Velobsteraptor W …May 21, 2026 -
Kyle Builds the Monogram 1/48 F-105G Wild Weasel — Build Feature
Wheels & Wings Hobbies · Scale Model Build Feature Kyle Builds the Monogram F-105G Wild Weasel: Yo …May 20, 2026