Jump to content

Modelling: Converting Vulkan He'stan


Recommended Posts

Hi everyone, after recently posting my Vulkan He'stan in various places I've had a few tutorial requests, and after making it figured I'd share it here too (you can also see it in my blog - just click the banner in my sig). I hope you enjoy it. :)

 

With this I set out to reproduce the artwork depicted in the codex as closely as possible. I must warn you now, if you're gaming on a budget this conversion probably isn't for you!

 

The part list is as follows:

Techmarine body

Grey Knight Terminator right arm with halberd

Terminator left Lightning Claw arm

Dark Elf Corsair cloak

Space Marine backpack

MkV Power Armour helmet (Assault on Black Reach missile launcher marine)

Forge World Salamander Terminator Shoulder Pads

Plastic tubing (I took mine from headphone wire)

Green stuff

40mm round base

Wire for pinning

 

Okay, let's get started. Note that since finishing the conversion I have swapped out the previous head for one more faithful to the artwork, as you can see in the final image.

 

 

Step 1: Main Body prep

First, trim all the mould lines, flash and such from everything. Take the Techmarine body and remove the head and Ad-mech iconography. I highly recommend using the dremel to do this, otherwise it'll be long, difficult, messy work - especially for the head.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/01.jpg

 

 

Step 2: Right Arm

Take the Grey Knight Terminator arm and trim the shoulder detail off until it fits the Forge World shoulder pads. Again, a dremel would make quicker work of this. Keep your shoulder pads handy to check the fit.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/02.jpg

 

 

Step 3: Left Arm

Take the left Lightning Claw arm and trim off the claws. In their place, glue four small pieces of plastic tubing, about 2mm long or so.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/03.jpg

 

 

Step 4: Backpack and Cloak

Remove the collar and torso parts from the Dark Elf Corsair cloak. Cut off the bottom section of the Space Marine backpack, and glue the remaining part to the top of the cloak. You will see in the last picture that I pinned them together for security (as I did with every joint in this conversion).

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/04.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/05.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/06.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/07.jpg

 

 

Step 5: Basic Assembly

Pin the backpack and cloak to the body, and pin the body to the base.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/08.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/09.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/10.jpg

 

 

Step 6: Basic Sculpting

Extend the cloak around the sides and add a tabard using green stuff. Since we will be sculpting scale details over these, they don't need to be incredibly detailed or perfectly smooth. You will also see that I have added pins for the arms.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/11.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/12.jpg

 

 

Step 7: Sculpting Scales

Now we sculpt the scales on the cloak and the tabard. To do this, spread a 1mm layer of green stuff over the surface. Next, press in the outline of a scale using the scupting tool. I tend to make irregular 5-6 sided shapes for the scales. Continue pressing in the lines, building up each scale from those already created. I recommend working on a small patch at a time instead of doing the whole surface in one go. I will be writing a more detailed tutorial for this shortly, so if you're not sure about the technique wait until then.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/13.jpg

 

 

Step 8: Final Assembly

Attach the arms, pinning them in place to make sure they are firm. Finally, remove the head from the AoBR missile launcher marine and trim it until it fits in place, then stick it on. All that remains now is to attach the shoulder pads and paint him up! I have decided to paint the shoulder pads separately, letting me get into the difficult areas of the model more easily.

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/14.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/VulkanHeStanfront.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/VulkanHeStanleft.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/VulkanHeStanright.jpg

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/VulkanHeStanback.jpg

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/Tutorials/Vulkan%20Hestan/18.jpg

 

 

And there we have it, a quick guide on how to create a Vulkan He'stan miniature which, in my opinion, is very faithful to his depiction in the codex artwork. I hope you've enjoyed this tutorial! Please feel free to ask for more detailed descriptions or pictures if you need them.

Looking forward to seeing him painted(we gonna see that?) I really like the scales as well.

 

 

However the termie fist/arm looks wierd; if i where you chop the fist off and stick to a pa arm and then add electric guitar string for cables

 

Thanks! I'll be adding him to the Hall of Honour when he's done.

 

I did have a spare PA LC which I tried but it looked a little wimpy compared to the picture in the codex.

Absolutely loving the model. One tiny little annoyance: The Helmet looks a little bland. I knew that's how it looked in the Codex, but I would like to see a little detailing on it, like laurels or a skull or somekind.

 

Otherwise, awesome and keep up the good work!

Thank you both!

 

Absolutely loving the model. One tiny little annoyance: The Helmet looks a little bland. I knew that's how it looked in the Codex, but I would like to see a little detailing on it, like laurels or a skull or somekind.

 

Otherwise, awesome and keep up the good work!

 

The detailing on the helmet is going to be painted on.

  • 1 month later...

Hi, great tutorial!

 

I was actually wondering about how you extracted that head from the "Assault on Black Reach" missile launcher marine and used it in your last photo? I have been looking everywhere to find someone who has done exactly this, and you are the first and only person I know that has. This is incredible! I have long wondered if it was possible, given the fact that this particular head bit is very set into the body of the original miniature that it comes from. I have seen other tutorials where the body of an “aobr” marine was used with the head removed, but there are no tutorials on how to extract the head of an aobr marine, particularly of that unique head from the aobr missile launcher marine.

In fact, after much research, that head is actually an mk5 head! You can tell if you cross reference it with the OOP mk5 marine currently being sold as part of the "Armour of the Ages" line. Although mk5 armor was built from spare parts and it is said that no two suits are identical, the similarities between this head and the “Armour of the Ages” mk5 marine are uncanny.

I would be eternally grateful if you could please post a tutorial or describe how you accomplished this difficult task! I am already so happy to have at least found an image of this endeavor done and finished. Thanks!

Hi, great tutorial!

 

I was actually wondering about how you extracted that head from the "Assault on Black Reach" missile launcher marine and used it in your last photo? I have been looking everywhere to find someone who has done exactly this, and you are the first and only person I know that has. This is incredible! I have long wondered if it was possible, given the fact that this particular head bit is very set into the body of the original miniature that it comes from. I have seen other tutorials where the body of an “aobr” marine was used with the head removed, but there are no tutorials on how to extract the head of an aobr marine, particularly of that unique head from the aobr missile launcher marine.

In fact, after much research, that head is actually an mk5 head! You can tell if you cross reference it with the OOP mk5 marine currently being sold as part of the "Armour of the Ages" line. Although mk5 armor was built from spare parts and it is said that no two suits are identical, the similarities between this head and the “Armour of the Ages” mk5 marine are uncanny.

I would be eternally grateful if you could please post a tutorial or describe how you accomplished this difficult task! I am already so happy to have at least found an image of this endeavor done and finished. Thanks!

 

I second this (very long) post.

Thanks folks!

 

Hi, great tutorial!

 

I was actually wondering about how you extracted that head from the "Assault on Black Reach" missile launcher marine and used it in your last photo? I have been looking everywhere to find someone who has done exactly this, and you are the first and only person I know that has. This is incredible! I have long wondered if it was possible, given the fact that this particular head bit is very set into the body of the original miniature that it comes from. I have seen other tutorials where the body of an “aobr” marine was used with the head removed, but there are no tutorials on how to extract the head of an aobr marine, particularly of that unique head from the aobr missile launcher marine.

In fact, after much research, that head is actually an mk5 head! You can tell if you cross reference it with the OOP mk5 marine currently being sold as part of the "Armour of the Ages" line. Although mk5 armor was built from spare parts and it is said that no two suits are identical, the similarities between this head and the “Armour of the Ages” mk5 marine are uncanny.

I would be eternally grateful if you could please post a tutorial or describe how you accomplished this difficult task! I am already so happy to have at least found an image of this endeavor done and finished. Thanks!

 

It doesn't take too much work, all you'll need is a saw and a knife.

 

First, cut it with the saw like so to remove it from the main body:

 

http://i14.photobucket.com/albums/a321/eek_107/Heroes%20of%20Armageddon/Salamanders/missilecuts.jpg

(you'll probably have to make the horizontal cut right across from the shoulder)

 

Trim around the bottom with the knife until it fits whatever neck area you're attaching it to. Pay particular attention to the back of the head, at the bottom. You might also need a touch of green stuff to patch up any gaps.

Of course, this is likely to leave the body useless without a lot of repair work, but I didn't really need it anyway. Hope this helps. :ph34r:

Thank you so much for your help! I have just ordered a citadel hobby saw off ebay and will be grabbing an assault on black reach missile marine asap. I never thought of simply sawing at the shoulder line to ensure that nothing of the head becomes missing!

 

Because I havent actually seen the model in person, I could only speculate how the process is done from pictures. I was wondering, is the back of the head partially covered like the back of this aobr marine's head?

 

http://i568.photobucket.com/albums/ss128/tanem315/aobrmarinebackofhead.jpg

 

Did you have to touchup the back of his head with green stuff?

Thank you so much for your help! I have just ordered a citadel hobby saw off ebay and will be grabbing an assault on black reach missile marine asap. I never thought of simply sawing at the shoulder line to ensure that nothing of the head becomes missing!

 

Because I havent actually seen the model in person, I could only speculate how the process is done from pictures. I was wondering, is the back of the head partially covered like the back of this aobr marine's head?

 

http://i568.photobucket.com/albums/ss128/tanem315/aobrmarinebackofhead.jpg

 

Did you have to touchup the back of his head with green stuff?

 

No problem. :)

 

Yes, his head is also covered like that. However, the Techmarine's armour on the neck/shoulder is more built up so I didn't have to fill in extra detail at the back. On a regular torso you probably will.

Archived

This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

By using this site, you agree to our Terms of Use.