CMDante's Blood Pact Conversion Log

[Still learning]

Ah, milliput thinned with acetate, why didn't I think of that... Thats genius. I use it all the time to fill plasticard jionts.

[CMDante]

Thinned with water actually, alot less fuss than using acetate and does the same job!

[Catferret]

Damn you having so many of the M16 autoguns!

I've got precious few left now or I would have sent you some of them too.

[Dark Apostle]

I love that axe!

[Toyship]

I'vee been watching this for a while, and I have to say I love the work you are doing. I was messing around on Deviantart last night and found this guy's work, should be inspirational...if you haven't seen it already that is:
http://kombat-unit.deviantart.com/ar...r-Ref-89348862

http://kombat-unit.deviantart.com/ar...tiest-92844285

I would really like to see the German style helmets that you talked about, and that are prevalent in this artwork. I also thought that you could use the wide-brimmed steel helmet from the Brettonian men at arms sprue for some variation. Looking great though, you've converted a new follower of Khorne.

[CMDante]

Thanks for the comments guys.

@ Catferret - Only 5 really (suppose that is alot these days though!) it wasn't cheap getting the big lot off ebay either! The pistols you were kind enough to include are fantastic, love the escher style one, its so crisp and detailed!

@ Dark Apostle - I've made the axe head a little smaller since that pic was taken in order to make it more realistically scaled. Still need to add a little motor and some exhausts to the back of it and probably a few other little details for details sake!

@ Toyship - Thanks for commenting. Malika had alerted me to those images before, while they are very good they are a little too much like regular german infantry. While the krieg style helmets would probably make the ones I do give helmets a bit like that too, I want to keep it quite unique in appearance. For this reason I will probably avoid the Bret helmet too, lots of them going about already in blood pact conversions.

I've been eyeing up the FW krieg quartermaster and commissar models as possible bases for converting a leader for my blood pact group from. I like the bone armour on the QM and think it would be very fitting. Ultimately I need to see the mini in the flesh and guage whether it would be worth cutting it apart to do.

Also, I recently found 2 more cool images relating to the blood pact, apparently from the Sabbat Worlds Crusade book (which I'm desperately trying to get hold of, if you have one going drop me a PM!)




The first is actually remarkably close in pose and armament to the first mini I did. The second is of Anakwanar Sek.

Cheers,

Dante

[Industrial Propaganda]

The first is actually remarkably close in pose and armament to the first mini I did. The second is of Anakwanar Sek.

Cheers,

Dante

Well.... The first picture isn't a Blood Pact warrior. It's a Son of Sek. From the horde of Anakwanar Sek "who's voice drowns out all others" (the second pic). Like the Blood Pact, the Sons of Sek were to be formed around the structure of the Imperial Guard.

They are rivals of Urlock Gaur and his Blood Pact horde.

[Toyship]

@ Toyship - Thanks for commenting. Malika had alerted me to those images before, while they are very good they are a little too much like regular german infantry. While the krieg style helmets would probably make the ones I do give helmets a bit like that too, I want to keep it quite unique in appearance. For this reason I will probably avoid the Bret helmet too, lots of them going about already in blood pact conversions.

I've been eyeing up the FW krieg quartermaster and commissar models as possible bases for converting a leader for my blood pact group from. I like the bone armour on the QM and think it would be very fitting. Ultimately I need to see the mini in the flesh and guage whether it would be worth cutting it apart to do.

Well, im glad you saw them at least! The FW quartermaster would be pretty cool, possibly with a Renegade Taskmaster head? I think that the skull would be perfect, but as you said you would need to see it first hand.

The art you posted looks great, I especially like the first fellow!

[sheep]

Fantastic stuff mate, the deatil is impressive in its obseesive qualities I'm really impressed by the fact that you will not just accept something once its done just for eases sake, going back and re doing the axe may seem frivilous to some but it will make a mini you are much happier with and untimately thats all you really have to do.

Going off the Krieg Vs Cadian scale issue, i don't think that the QM would fit in very well with out massive amounts of work on your part. The cadians are just too bulky to blend well with him.

On the helmet issue, have you tried 1/35th or 1/48th scale german infantry kits, they are relitively inexpensive, esp if you just get the equipment set, and it'll come with potato mashers too

Cheers

Sheep

[CMDante]

Well.... The first picture isn't a Blood Pact warrior. It's a Son of Sek. From the horde of Anakwanar Sek "who's voice drowns out all others" (the second pic). Like the Blood Pact, the Sons of Sek were to be formed around the structure of the Imperial Guard.

They are rivals of Urlock Gaur and his Blood Pact horde.

Yep, thats why I said "related to Blood Pact". While it is a Son of Sek, the illustration has clearly been massively influenced by the existing blood pact illustration and in general the blood pact imagery. Afterall, the SOS are based on the blood pact in the stories anyway.

@ Toyship - Yeah, with regards the FW renegades, I'm really trying to avoid involving anything that is quite commonly seen in renegade guard conversions so I'll probably try to steer clear of using too much from that range, some bits will no doubt make it in though where appropriate, theyre just too cool not to!

@ Sheep - Cheers mate, what can I say, I am obsessional over details. I really feel they are what make mini's unique and seperate the great from the average. Everyone has seen a cadian before, no matter how well painted, but not everyone has seen a cadian butchered to the point of being unrecognisable as one and turned into something entirely different. It's for this very reason that I loved your cadian armoured company when I first saw them and the truescale marine you did.

As for the FW debate, good point, I had forgot about the dramatic scale differences. I don't think I'll be too keen to butcher the QM model to make him the same size as the current blood pact I've done, would be as well sculpting my own from scratch for the amount of effort it would take....don't even tempt me!

Know any providers of german helmets in 1:48?

Cheers,

Dante

@ Sheep -

[razormasticator]

Dude, this log is brilliant. I love it. Very nice work here.

[sheep]

A quick google came up with these.

1:48 german infantry

Theres a few more in the 1:35 that are just all about equipment.

Hope this helps mate.

Cheers

Sheep

[CMDante]

@ razormasticator - Thanks for the kind words mate.

@ sheep - Any ideas which would be the better scale to go with on flagellant or ghoul heads? I'm thinking 1/48 may be a bit better?

More pics of the current status of the second trooper:






The axe has been made noticeably smaller and more realistically scaled and I've got to say, I'm much happier with it now. It took alot of cutting and gluing to put it together, just to cut it apart again and make it smaller but I think it was worth it. The axe head isnt finished yet though. I still need to finish the top and the other side of the engine on the back of it, at the moment these areas are very WIP. The engine also needs the gaps filled at the joins where the plastic part from a marine chainsword meets the casing.

I've also settled on the bare flagellant head as quite simply I think it fits better with the pose. You can make out the work I've done in adding the eyes more clearly in this pic too.

The belt has been added since the last pics, complete with belt hoops and the top of the trousers. The shirt has also been completed right the way round the body.

I've also made a start on his base, pretty simple so far, just a few bricks made from carved sprue and some gravel and scatter.

Anyway, as usual comments, questions and constructive criticism welcome.

Cheers,

Dante

[sheep]

1:48 is you're best bet mate.

He's really starting to come together, the pose looks great, really great sense of motion and impending brutality.

Cheers

Sheep

[Azrael666]

Oh my god! these minis are awesome.

You going for demon next year???

[Catferret]

No messing with that axe!

Nice work, it looks great.

[Acerbus]

wow that's amazing, the greenstuff work is great!

[Lord Cook]

The level of detail is extraordinary...

[CMDante]

Thanks guys!

@ Azrael666 - I hope to yes, it will be the first golden demon I've entered and only my second to go to.

@ Catferret - Cheers mate, I think making it a bit smaller and more proportioned actually made it a little meaner looking too. Before it was a bit too big and comical, looked more like a glaive if anything. In the end my girlfriend talked me into making resizing it as originally I wasn't sure I could without messing it up. Glad I did though!

Looking forward to seeing more of your marauders for your Mordheim gang by the way!

@ Acerbus - Thanks!

@ Lord Cook - Comments like that make me really happy, I'm glad people notice all the little details that add to the realism IMO.

More soon. Just need to finish the axe head, do some work on the arms to make sure they fit ok, carve out some cadian shoulder pads and then its just the little details (which always take the longest!). I'm thinking of maybe doing the hands on a chain thing for round his neck and put the mask somewhere on his belt.

Cheers,

Dante

[Monsterzonk]

Lovely work, Dante! His trousers look so real, especially the area around the waistbelt. And the axe simply rocks!

Cheers,
Monsterzonk