New Daemonhunters Force

[Ioldanach]

With my DIY Avengers Space Marine Chapter on hold, I've decided to give myself a small diversion in creating a Daemonhunters kill team that I might expand later into a full-fledged army (depending on what GW does with the codex, that is).

My main motivation for this is to expand my horizons a little bit, and because I have a specific model I'd really like to paint up, shown at right.

I'm not a huge fan of any of the current Ordo Malleus Inquisitor models, so I'm thinking about converting the Crusader to be my Inquisitor (in the kill team he'd be an elites choice, in the full army he'd be a full-fledged Inquisitor Lord).

What I'm looking for is your advice on suitably converting this guy to represent an Inquisitor vice being confused for a Crusader (yes, not having Crusaders in the Daemonhunters army list is there, but someone might confuse him for a Warrior in a Retinue). I really like the mini as he currently is, although I may re-design the shield face. If I make any other physical conversions, I might add something to the helmet, though I'm fairly keen on leaving it low in profile because I like the sinister imagery of the hooded Inquisitor (as seen at left). That image reminds me of the classic Eldar Warlock model that I really love, but the sword down pose isn't one I want for the leader of my army/kill team.

So I'm thinking about representing the model's status as an Inquisitor by giving it a suitable base. Other than that, I'm considering giving it a suitably elaborate paint job, focusing on the cape and cowl, and possibly trying to show some filigree on the armor, especially the helmet. I haven't settled on a color scheme yet.

I haven't settled on the rest of the kill team or even what I will use for the larger army. At this point, my focus is solely on modeling and painting the Crusader/Inquisitor suitably.

[WingsOfTheFalcon]

I think you need to go to town a bit more, Inquisitors are meant to have the most esoteric and diverse range of weapons and equipment in the imperium. The problem with leaving this model almost stock is that everyone automatically sees it as the classic Crusader model. I also tend to think that full helms don't work very well for inquisitors, you need to see the personality of the model better with an inquisitor. (Subjective of course)

 

If you are going to stick with this mini, firstly I'd ask what you intend the shield to represent? If I remember correctly you can't equip an Inquisitor with a combat shield? I'd think about removing that shield as the first step, it ties the mini too much to the Crusader archtype. The only issue is then the arm is at a poor angle to hold a firearm, so I'd suggest replacing it with some type of pole-arm, either a spear or glaive or something similar. You could then put some kind of interesting firearm into the models current sword arm.

 

That would be where I would start, I'd then think about some really detailed basing and what else I could do to build the mini up so it doesn't just look like a Crusader but something really different and unique. (Which is kind of the key thing with any Inquisitor model!)

 

Keep us informed though, sounds like an interesting project. :)

[Brovius]

There is one Inquisitor model i personally like here: http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/...otCatGameStyle=

 

Could easily be converted to have any sort of weapon on the bolt pistol hand (plus that pistol would look awesome on a SM captain)

[Ioldanach]

I'm drawing upon some of the older material on the Inquisition here, as well as little bit of influence from Star Wars (Darth Sidious, Darth Maul, and Darth Vader, to be exact).

Here is some of the older material I'm looking at:

Most Inquisitors wear powered armour, often discreetly hidden under a tabard and worn without a helmet.

...

Inquisitors do not wear uniforms, instead they wear civilian dress - itself variable throughout the Imperium. They do wear a badge of office as a sign of authority, but as often as not they will be working under cover and would not display it.

This is later augmented (some might say contradicted) in some points...

Members of the Ordo [Malleus] favour a simple and sinister uniform. They wear black, loose-fitting habits over their armour with large hoods that hide their faces in shadow. Graphic electoos (a form of tattoo) are a traditional, though unofficial, addition to the uniform of the Ordo. Because graphic electoos appear to move beneath the owner's skin, their appearance can be quite disturbing. Again by tradition, Ordo Inquisitors have one graphic electoo for each coven member they have discovered and cleansed, and it is not uncommon for successful Inquisitors to be covered from head to foot in elaborate designs. The designs for Ordo electoos have been fixed for generations, and the motifs chosen are always variations on Daemons and scenes of the daemonic, the Ordo's enemies. This makes Ordo member's electoos particularly horrifying.

The badge of the Ordo, the Imperial eagle clutching a rod and an axe, is usually worn on the shoulder or the right breast...

The first quote I provided is about the Inquisition as a whole, while the second quote is specifically about the Ordo Malleus, so it might not be an actual contradiction.

And then there is the information from the Inquisitor game:

In appearance, Inquisitors have no uniform and are as varied as the worlds in the Imperium they operate on. They range in age from fiery young zealots to hoary veterans who have fought in the darkness for many centuries. Some wear ostentatious robes and symbols of their allegiance, those from a noble background may keep their refined and well-tailored coats and shirts, while many Inquisitors wear powered armour of some description, often highly decorated or worn under a sleeveless tabard or coat.

I agree with the notion that character models are often most distinctive when their faces are visible. However, I'm not one for conventional wisdom, nor do I want to constrain myself based on other peoples' views. :) I know that the first quote I provided says that most Inquisitors prefer not to wear helmets, but that means that there are some that do wear helmets. Perhaps this guy was horribly disfigured in his endless battles against the enemies of Mankind, perhaps he wants to prevent others from having to look upon the electoos upon his face (especially if he's under cover), perhaps he requires the helmet and mask because he was horribly injured when Obi Wan Kenobi left him to die upon Mustafar ;) . Besides, converting the model to have a bare head would take some work. I might do that, but only because I'd want to represent an electoo-covered face. That would be pretty interesting. I'll have to consider whether or not to keep the helmet/mask. Both options provide an interesting alternative, so I think it might come down to how much work I want to do. Maybe I'll convert the cowled version to retain the helmet (saving myself the hassle of having to do any conversion work) and then convert the other version to show the bare head. Hmmm...

And the model that Brovius linked to is a perfect example of a helmeted Inquisitor.

What I'm really going for is a very subdued and sinister appearance, mostly black and other dark colors. At this point I think I've waffled back to the cowled version. I'll probably pick out the power armour in silver, though I may try to give it some filigree embellishments. I'm considering giving the sword a reddish glow (I told you the Sith are starting to call to me), possibly even trying my hand at having that glow reflected on the nearby surface of the figure's cloak and armour. What I'd like to do is use this model to do something like the Forge World Solomon Lok figure, crossed with Darth Vader and that weird guy from the first Hellboy movie (yes, there were multiple weird guys - I'm talking about the freak assassin guy).

I agree that I'm going to need to do some work to make the figure stand out as an Inquisitor - as a character model. Other than the embellishments that will mostly be accomplished through painting, I think that the base is going to have to be the area in which I elevate this figure from a supporting character to a lead actor. Perhaps I'll use a larger base with suitable additions to raise the level of the mini and lend it an air of authority.

As far as the shield goes, an Inquisitor Lord can be equipped with a storm shield or an Icon of the Just. The icon is good because it will allow for an additional weapon, though I'm a slave to WYSIWYG (with a little bit of reasonable "counts as" thrown in), so I would either have to add a holster somewhere (perhaps just a pistol grip visible under the edges of the cloak) or have the weird eyepiece count as a needle pistol or something.

What I might do is totally redesign the face of the shield, using a rotary tool to grind the current details off. The raised part beneath the figure's fingers can be filled with green stuff and turned into a plate of sorts. Everything below that, though, might be filed smooth and then detailed with a combination of green stuff sculpting and painting to create a suitably ornate item to represent an Icon of the Just.

Once I finish that model and figure out what the rest of the Daemonhunters kill team is going to be, I might go back and try my hand at a bare-faced version with electoos, using the other Crusader model.

Edited July 14, 2010 by Brule the Spear-Slayer

[fivepointedstar]

heres an option and a bit of conversion work (maybe) on your part. get the deamonhunter corteaz and his nifty retinue, and take out his head add cowled helmet, and subtract hammer for sword. modify the eagle, and walla a new armored (crusader-looking) Inquisitor, and he'd be frickkin sexy i might add too.

[Magnus Thane]

An interesting concept indeed! I'll keep an eye on this!