1500pt Converted Marine Tournie Force

[Rich 123]

Hello again,
I haven't made very much progress with anything in the last few days as I have been busy with real work. So just a quick update.


At the moment Ive just been blocking in parts of the armour to fill in the back as well as defined the shape and angle runnign down the front better. Still none of the initial details have started to get done yet.


I pinned his thighs in place but after a bit of fiddling and comparison although proportionally correct they make him look mammoth next to other terminators (and my other termies have some slight height increases too) I want him to be bulky rather than overly tall.

However, I knew I should have bought some more super glue before Easter as now no shop is open and I ran out, which is typical. I need to pick up some more styrene rod for new thighs anyway. They are wider than the termie thighs these rods (the same total width of the termie thighs but I haven't sculpted the re-bars on them yet so will be decently wide - bigger termies never look right if the thighs aren't altered which I see all too much.

So, tasks. Buy more super glue and some more styrene rod. Make thighs shorter so that the legs can be shorter without having to just make the shins disproportionately short. Once some green stuff has cured a bit more I might start on actually detailing the torso instead or start work on the shield - though those exhausts need alot more work to get them how I want them to look and to be integrated in anyway. I also intend the storm bolter to be mounted on something a bit more elaborate than a lump of BluTac . But Im feeling quite tired so working will probably just make me want to chill out instead rather than start converting again much today anyway.

More later maybe
Rich

[spongebob103]

!!! Looks Great !!!

[McMullet]

The Mk VI chappie's finger looks much more plausible like that, job's a good 'un.

The chaplain looks mighty impressive!

[Brother_Captain_Eberus]

Woah!
Man I like the way things are looking for you.
I can't wait to see the resuts of the Chaplain, nor can I wait till you start work on the dread.....
Keep up the good work.

[Rich 123]

Not been able to make all that much progress as I have been busy with alot of work.

But I have worked on the chaplain a little. I started etailing his chest and began work on his Death Mask. Also there are some big drippy candles to parody the light cluster termies normally have on their armour.


I wanted to make my own death mask for him rather than a stock casting or some such of a chaplain termie or (heaven forbid) that CSM skull helmet.

[Its just placed in the helmet ring for a dry run, I had it on a piece of wire for working on and it will return there for more work once its cured and I can have a fiddle with what I have done here]

All it is at present is some new, more skull like cheek bones and a roughed out shape of a skull sforehead, which needs some work obviously. Then I need to skulpt a skulls nose over some teeth that will double as a new respirator for him. By the way I made the helmet much less deep as well, more in proportions of a human skull rather than the more neaderthal look of a termie helm now.

Oh yes, the exhausts are less evident now as I have cut them don just near to the roof of his armour so that smaller tubes can be fitted tot he tops for the final look, just a bit less bulky and unrefined. Will need to smooth out the back of the armour and start detailing the exhausts running into the armour and maybe some sign of the power plant on the back - being a heresy era suit of armour and all

And the beginings of his shield. It is curved made from laminating 3 0.5mm pieces of plasticard together.
Laminating the plastic - good old Mr Muscle, had the right sort of curve I was looking for!


I have started sculpting on the chapters wing icon although Im not sure I like it as I tried to incorporate a boss into the shield, very similar to the classic Roman design. I may just not have a boss in order to have a thapter symbol look normal in corect proportions. The shield is abit too narrow to have, what is a very broad device as the wing I use, flanking either side of that boss. Mores the pity I think, but oh well.
The very beginnings.


Thats about all my progres so far. Ill probably just try to finish off that mk4 marine or do another termie tomorrow.
Thanks forr the kind comments and input!
Rich

[McMullet]

I'm really looking forward to seeing the chaplain, that sculpting is fantastic!

Even if you should really be working on the bolter marines...

[Brother_Captain_Eberus]

Man....I don't know what to say, you are doing well.
Keep it up

[Aquilla]

Is there any theme with the backround of the army or are the vanilla flavoured?!

[KayvaanShrike]

That Chaplain looks cool, so how much bigger than the other termies will he be? Just bulkier rather than too much taller? Apart from his storm bolter and shield, what other weapons will he have? I guess he will have a Crozius of some sort? What are you going to use to represent his Rosarius?
Keep up the awesome work

[Rich 123]

Last update for a while Im afraid, as I have uni again soon and with my end of year exhibition to do I won't be spending time modelling as Ill have more enough on my plate with that.

Not that I cant post this stuff and answer some questions that have come up !

Front:

[I got one arm pinned now having spent a while trying to line it up as best as possible to suit human proportions in terminator armour - especially this bulkier suit, which is why his upper arm is slightly shorter now. The shaft he is holding in his hand will be shorter and is the (very) beginings of his main weapon, a hammer]

Back:

[Started on some of the detailing on the back although some of the green stuff also needs some smoothing still. Also sorted out the exhausts some]

Helmet:

[Appears a little rough as I just gave his forehead and cheekbones a little fine sanding and should have washed off the dust - my sculpting ability is coming along but small details like this Im still a quite shaky with! I wont be using the helmet here, its just a placeholder. I will be using the face from the FW commissar tank commander, its such an arrogant expression and the bionic left eye ties in nicely to the pintle storm bolter on his left shoulder]


To answer some of your questions. Kayvaan, this guy will be mainly bulkier than termies rather than too much taller as I want it to still appear like there is a human inside, massive termies are alot more believable with chaos forces I find. Although I want to make a little squad of EC at some point after this, so will probably explore themes like alien proportions and such with them.

The weapons he will have in his hands are a shield in his left hand and a large stone headed hammer in his right. This is not meant to be a thunder hammer and will clearly look like a block of stone riveted with metal straps onto the hamme shaft.

I wanted to show the devotion and drive of chaplains to be visually seen by the marines as smiting the enemies of the Emperor. The hammer is a typical weapon in the past for bishops and other members of the clergy. Partly because they arent allowed to wield edged weapons (which is a little like following the letter rather than the spirit of their doctrine but at least they tried to help in wars) as well as the hammer being a fearsome weapons to behold in combat I find. Edged weapons have a degree of finess both in use and what they do to an opponent. A hammer just uses its mass to crush and break things. So perfect weapon for a chaplain.

His storm bolter will be shoulder mounted and he will have his crozius hanging from his belt. These will be the two weapons he will have in game terms (more a case of What-You-Get-Is-In-There-Somewhere rather than WYSIWYG). I have always found the fact that chaplains wield their crozius, a company relic and religious symbol, in anger in combat. It strikes me as odd which is why he wont be actually appearing to use it as well as for the reasons above. A storm shield is of no actual use to a chaplain rules wise which is why the shield isnt included. I just thought the look would be too much fun to be able to go without it.

His rosarius will be one of the suitable terminator honours pendants from the termie sprue, there is one that is just right for it, hanging on a braid or a chain, from (probably) his belt.

Aquilla, I dont like to think of this project as a vanilla army but more as a chapter that is very codex. Some things I will break oiut of that mould with, but even down to squad organisation I will only be using 5 or 10 man squads, like back in the day! I feel its a shame they stopped being the only two sizes for marine squads! The main theme behind this army is to evoke in the minis some of what marines are meant to be like in the fluff I have read to the way I interpretted it. Super warriors able to do anything in combat, so yay them . The chapter itself is a DIY one of mine with some Roman flavour in it and a dash of Greek to the design and the colour scheme as well. I also wanted to contrast the differances between the flambouyant autominous marines and the othe rhumans soldiers, the lowly Imperial Gard waiting for the order to die basically. Why my marines that are bearheaded all have long hair to contrast the typical IG crewcut. If I ever made any IG (I couldnt take doing any more than a squad) they wouldnt be in poses anything like these, they would be running low crouched and scared, hiding, crying, shellshocked and wounded. As I feel they should be, especially when compared to the martial prowess of marines in the fluff.

Phew, thats quite a bit, sorry got carried away. A cookie to anyone who reads all that I should think! I will be breaking from this now, and thanks for your comments thus far, any questions you may have just go for it though, Ill be checking the forums all the while!

Thanks
Rich

[Edit: Oh yes, Mcmullet, Im not working on tactical marines at the moment but this is proving to be more fun! Ill get back onto them though when Im back, trust me!]

[McMullet]

How on Earth did you get the GS on the chestplate so smooth? Especially the wibbly edge bits.

Where's the shoulderpad going to go on the arm you've done? I assume is won't be the standard quarter-spherical job, but there's not a lot of room there.

Anyhow, good work so far!

[Rich 123]

I should have taken a picture with the shoulder pad BluTacced in place. It fits but far back and at an angle. This was a deliberatedecision as I wanted to show some of the reactive nature of power armour. I like the idea of all these many armour plates moving and sliding over one and other as the wearer moves around to accomodate each other and not to block his field of vision.

The shoulder pads will be based on standard termie pads but are actually going to be broader and the small little square at the bottom is going to be extended down to a point with curves either side. A less angular look. I dont want to do a cut down power armoru shoulder pad with some straps as I dont think they look all that good and wanted to make the armour look old fashioned in other ways. The shoulder pad on that arm has a skull recessed into in in a circular hole as I remember seeing something liek that on some old chaplain artwork. I thought some scroll work to paint the list of the armours previous (or maybe just distinguished) wearers on it too. His left pad will probably have a pauldron fitted as again I wanted it to look old fashioned and at the moment the armour is reminiscant of alot of the aesthetics of medieval armour and this would just reinforce that slightly. It will have a pretty standard crux on it though I thought.

Incedentally each terminator will have adifferently painted crux on their shoulder. It is meant to be a carved stone device with a shard of the Emperor's armour set within it and I hardly imagined each suit of terminator armour to have been constructed at the same time so was going to paint each a different colour (some just slightly different) stone type. Shows maybe the predominant stone on the forgeworld of its construction or one particually valued. So the sergeant may have a nic epolished granite crux, with the squad members varying with sandstone, shale and so forth. Softer stoned I may destroy the crux slightly before priming as sandstone carvings would get damaged alot quicker in many balltes than granite ever will. Of course white marble crux for the chaplain, both as it is valued and looks good and with contrast the black armour nicely.

Mcmullet, the armour was smoothed carefully again and again. so I would define the edge of the amrour first to get the shape then work back into the surface smoothing it and then make the edge nice and crisp again after that. It involves waiting for the green stuff to cure fully in between each stage. My sculpting ability isnt good enough to get beautifully smooth surfaces and crisp edges in one or two layers but its a way for me to work it

Rich

[Rich 123]

Hello one and all,
Bit of a double post here, sorry. However, I have got back into my workshop and have started up on my marines again after a pretty hectic term at uni.

Not much progress as of yet, Ive been building some bases (as most of the finished marines are unbased - finished as in finished modelling them)

I finished the hand and other small bits of sculpting and gap filling on the missile launcher which makes him the 5th and final member of the first tactical squad. The army list on page one doesn't have a 5 man tactical squad but Im rethinking the army list to cut down on the sheer number of marines a bit...

Each side of the mini:


And a close up of the hand:


Much as running is at odds with a missile launcher, I've see so many stationary heavy weapons that I wanted something a bit more dynamic and to also fit more with the running squad.
Continued ...

[Rich 123]

... Continued

The other, stationary squad has had a little work on them too this morning quickly. Getting a better base done for this guy - I can see myself needing to make a lot of tiled bases in the near future I think


And the beginnings of the squads veteran sergeant receiving orders on his com-link. This one is very WIP if you cant tell and the wet GS wasn't really conducive to good photography.


Ive also been working into that old techmarine biker conversion I did as my sculpting ability has come on a long way since then and especially as Ive decided I want to field him in this army as well. Just really cleaning up the sculpting on his legs and arms though I should think. Maybe a few extra details worked back intot he bike as well.

Thats all for now, Ill be back later with more Im sure
Rich

[the dark angel]

you are one awsome GS worker! i wish i was that good ,sadly not keep up the good work i hope to see more

[self biased]

outstanding work. keep it going.

[Rich 123]

Been making a number of bases and working on the Sergeant this afternoon (as well as getting in some swimming in the sun).



Its pretty obvious this guy needs some more work done on him. Gap filling is a must as well as repairing the bolter after grafting two together. Then sculpt him some long hair and any other detailing along with finishing off the base.

Six more tactical marines left to do after this, I think!

Thanks for your comments - it helps encourage me !
Rich

[Mortare]

Just going back to your chaplain, like the work done so far, but just to point out that there isnt a set image for a crozius, nothing wrong with making it the hammer itself, suitably ornate and holds with the imagery

[Metal Fingered Villain]

Wow, your marines are sweet. I love the subtle yet very effective conversions your using that make the normally very static marine models dynamic. Love the work and look forward to seeing more.

[Lavfluris]

It's great to see you back at work. Keep it up and you could have them done for the Carnage Social.