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How to make a skald for my Wolf Guard


Prosedragon

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Good day everyone,

 

I'm new to the Wolves, and am currently working on my Wolf Guard. I think a very cool conversion to have in the squad would be a skald/bard type character. The idea for this is based mainly on the Space Wolves novels, where Berek had a skald that traveled with him. I saw another post similar to this, but I think he was going in a different direction than I would like to.

 

Having said that, I don't really have a game plan - I'm looking mainly for input on how to make this model, what to include on it (thematically, and which specific bits), general ideas. I do know I want him in power armor, I would like some kind of musical instrument on him somewhere, though probably not in his hand, and I'd rather it were some type of stringed instrument - a guitar, lute, something similar.

 

My greenstuff-fu is limited to filling cracks and flat-casting, but I could probably handle some minor sculpting.

 

This is really just the brainstorming phase, but I appreciate any input!

I brought this up a while back and the general opinion is that Skalds were story tellers with all the stories memorized. This however doesnt help because, how can you model that? I have decided to give him a drinking horn and when I find a suitable model, a book where the sagas are detailed.
There are the scroll bits from the Terminator sprues, the book can be taken from an Inquisitor or possibly something from the SoB line, though there are more scrolls there too. Not sure modeling a SW with a lute would do any more than draw laughter and ridicule on a battlefield (table) from opponents though, just sayin'. Rune Armor would make him more ornate rather than covered in pelts. Perhaps if your GS-fu is up to it, a satchel or large pouch could be modelled and tied around the waist or draped over a shoulder holding/containing a number of scrolls with the litanies of the Skald.

Give him a banner with a painting on it incorporating elements of lots of different stories in a mural style.

 

Something like this http://lib.trinity.edu/images/mural1_500.gif where lots of elements blend into others.

 

I was going to suggest painting it on his armour but that's a bit tricky.

 

Marek

I would give him wooden pipes (which were used by vikings) similiar to those of the greek demi-god pan. Check out this ural for some info:

 

http://housebarra.com/EP/ep02/17vinstr.html

 

Just strap them on to the side instead of grenades or holster. They are very easy to make. I'd also choose a SW head without a beard, they seem more artistically inclined.

Normally the sagas had never been written, the skalds recitating them from memory. I now that in the novel one off the WG had been Berek´s skald but normally it´s the job of the Rune Priests. They´re the Lore Keepers of the Fang. And every thousand years, when Lord Bjorn will be awaken, he tested the knowledge off the Rune Priests about the history of the Chapter.

For a WG Skald i would look for a horn, maybe from the Chaos Warriors or Chaos Knights from WHF.

theres a horn in the SW WG termi set. why dont you use that? besides that, itd be pretty easy to make pipe instruments with GS, even for us GS padawan aha.

 

the way i always thought of Bereks skald was that he would be very fluent in different languages, being able to write and converse in different tongues. he could act as a scribe, bard, or in battle, a personal translator when cracking into enemy communications.

First, thanks for everyone's response - thanks especially to cherrboh, I completely missed the horn on the WG sprues.

 

What I think I will do to make a visually distinct skald is: give him a horn and a set of pipes (two good ideas), a non-crazy bearded head, though I haven't really found one I liked yet, paint his armor a lighter shade (most of the army will be shadow gray, his will probably be painted more like GW's space wolves, and put some runes on his armor. He will also be the only model in the army with a sword (other than a chainsword).

 

Will all of that do to make him visually distinct, and get a skalding appearance?

 

Thanks for everyone's help so far, any other ideas are welcome.

i'm kind of making my rune priest almost skald like. hes a hunched old hermit type, who will have a lot of charms, tomes and maybe some scrolls on him... heres a pic

 

http://i400.photobucket.com/albums/pp86/stinkenheim/DSC00731.jpg

 

as you can see i made him look frail and hunched, i also made it look like he was using his staff for support more than anything. i dont want him to look like a front line fighter more a wizened old man.

dont know if thats any use to you

Again, thanks for the comments. Your rune priest looks great...I don't quite know how you gave a marine in power armor a hunched, old appearance, but you did it well. Very cool.

 

I think I'm almost going for more a D&D bard more than a nordic skald - I do still like the idea of a stringed instrument. Is there anything anyone knows of in the GW range that would suffice? The idea of sculpting or scratchbuilding something that small is incredibly intimidating.

 

Also, for the sword, I am looking for something almost "rapier"ish, in that its not brutal like a chainsword or an ax, and even the marine powerswords are too big for what I'm looking for. Somewhere I have a sword that I believe went to an empire wizard. Lengthwise its perfect, but its still very thin. That attached to a guard sergeant's chainsword I think would make the perfect sword for him. One (I think) nice touch I will give him will be bare hands (taken from guard, chaos marauders, etc), because a stringed instrument would be difficult to play in gloves.

 

I am going more for a youthful appearance with mine. The idea is crystalising more and more, unfortunately the right bits still elude me, I still have not started. As such, I'm still taking suggestions, and would still appreciate any of them.

For your sword considerations, I have a few Mordheim Claymores that I'm going to be using (somehow) in my conversions. Not as thick as the provided power swords, a little longer but not quite pointy toothpick Rapier-esque, IMO. Just sayin'.

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