BCK's Thread of Stuff: Maybe not eldar...

[Jukkiz]

You could add something like BA jump pack chaplain has on its legs as decoration.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Normally, I don't pay much attention to memes but every once in a while I see one that really hits home.

 

http://i.imgur.com/QD2M9yy.png

 

First with the GD 99 marine and now with this Chaplain I'm doing for the Tale of Gamers 2017:

 

http://i.imgur.com/fp5HBOd.png

 

Who now looks like this:

 

http://i.imgur.com/9A6p9NI.png

[Vairocanum]

Well it's definitely great to see the subtle changes you add to these older models, so greenstuffing all of them is a plus I think .

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

The unfortunate part of most of the GD99's greenstuffing is fixing awful casting problems. On a different subject, I mentioned in Augustus b'Rass's thread that I had recently found one of the old metal Bloodthirster models I bought years ago on clearance from my LGS and since sleep wasn't happening, I started doing a little tinkering.

 

http://i.imgur.com/s99SyOd.png

 

Like a lot of the GW figures, the torso appears too short to me, making the figure look squat, so I got a "fun" reminder of what it's going to be like working with a hefty metal figure again. I still have impressions in my fingers from holding it to drill out the holes for that big pin. So what's the plan for this guy? I don't like either of the heads that came with the kit so I'll have to do something about that. I was surprised to see how much his pecs looked like boobs and I figure most of the armored breastplate area of the chest is going to get ground down and resculpted. Not sure what I want to do with the weapons, but I think it will either be two one-handed axes or a big two-hander and whether he kee[s his original arms will depend on that decision.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

My Dremel got a serious workout tonight on the Bloodthirster torso. The old metal kit comes with a torso for each head - the only difference being the shape of the neck hole - so it's handy for me to see just how much material I've removed, for reference when I start building it back up, and for comparison pictures to show here:

 

http://i.imgur.com/vmrJ1PW.png

 

I'm also starting on an idea for a terminator chaplain:

 

http://i.imgur.com/s8aPP1u.png

 

I shifted the position of legs just slightly with a hot water dip, and you can see the cracks on the outside edges of the weird metal tabard thing where it had previously been touching the legs and now has pulled away. The cracks up on the hip armor are also from the re-positioning

 

A custom crozius will be in his left hand and he will suitably decorated with the usual chaplain relics and whatnot, but not as crazy as that limited edition one GW recently did. I don't know if I want to go with a traditional skull helm or do something more stylized by altering this one.

 

I tried out the camera on my new phone with these pics and I think it did a good job.

Edited June 15, 2017 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Did some more grinding and filing on the 'Thirster and had a trial run at sculpting some muscle back onto him. It went well, ohhh yeah. This ain't your daddy's Bloodthirster.

 

http://i.imgur.com/QnWXzO5.png

 

I will probably re-do the deltoid muscle on the shoulder as the size and shape got away from me, but the putty was nearing the end of its working life at that point. It's been a while since I attempted muscle so defined and I was surprised at how much it was like sculpting cloth with more structure in the shape and direction of the "folds".

 

 

[WarriorFish]

Your work never ceases to amaze, especially at the rate you produce it! :tu:

[Sagentus]

Really like the bloodthirster, looking forward to seeing your converted version. 

 

I really like the termi chaplain and the re-positioning of the legs. quick question though, do you just dip the legs in hot water? or apply water to the part you wish to maneuver? Also, do you use boiling water or just hot water from the tap?  

[Chandrian]

Ooo come on! you got rid of the Chaos star nipples!!!!!  

Well done with the Chest, the muscles look way better than the original!

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Your work never ceases to amaze, especially at the rate you produce it!

 

Thanks! Not sure if that last part is serious though...

 

Really like the bloodthirster, looking forward to seeing your converted version. 

 

I really like the termi chaplain and the re-positioning of the legs. quick question though, do you just dip the legs in hot water? or apply water to the part you wish to maneuver? Also, do you use boiling water or just hot water from the tap?  

 

Yes, boiling water for a 5-10 seconds and then I would move the legs into the position I wanted, holding it for 10-15 seconds for a soft set and then dunking it in cold water. Sometimes it flexes back to its original position when it cools and I had to do multiple dips in the water.

 

Ooo come on! you got rid of the Chaos star nipples!!!!!  

 

Well done with the Chest, the muscles look way better than the original!

 

Yeah, the chaos star nipples and the man (demon) boobs had to go.

 

Even more Dremeling on the torso, mostly focusing on the back this time.

 

http://i.imgur.com/tGACDnV.png

 

The height of the wing pegs versus the original really shows how much material was removed.

 

Do you guys think the muscles are too striated? Looking at it fresh this morning, I wondered if it seems like there's no skin on top of them. I'll probably re-sculpt the chest anyway since this was a practice run and something else I noticed this morning is that the center line of the chest muscles is off so that will need to be corrected anyway.

 

Oh, and it was also surprise leg day today for this guy, taking off the thigh armor and shaving down the muscles in prep for re-building.

 

http://i.imgur.com/Ya4tmeM.png

Edited June 17, 2017 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Ferrus Manus]

Muscle work looks good so far, but I wonder if they'd look less strained with slightly more subtle 'folds?'

 

I'm assuming with all this work your putting in you aren't going to resculpt armour? 

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I'm considering armor and where, if any, to put it. The current idea is to leave his chest and back bare but I might do a large belt/half-breastplate kind of thing. The legs will have some armor for sure.

[hushrong]

You are a mad man.

 

 

 

And I look forward to the fruits of your labor.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

I am a bit mad, aren't I? Otherwise, why would I keep doing these sorts of things to myself?

 

I found a head that might work that's nothing like a normal Bloodthirster head, and while it will need some work to get it where I want, it really gets the Hulk-like raging fury feel across that I want for this model.

 

*edit* Oh yeah, I've decided to go with dual axes instead of a big two-hander.

Edited June 16, 2017 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Speaking of axes, I put down some rough ideas for axe head shapes on my lunch break. Some good, some not, and I'll try to remember to take a mechanical pencil with me from now on.

 

http://i.imgur.com/p43fT8s.png

[marine7312000]

I'm a fan of any of the bearded axe design but specifically row 1 number 2 and row 2 number 1.

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Oh yeah, I love bearded axes and you picked two of the four I like most out of the bunch:

 

http://i.imgur.com/4VdXpiE.png

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Now that these images can be posted here, have a look at my custom version of Jain Zar that's still being worked on now and again. Basically, I never cared for the original Jain Zar model and decided to do my own take on her. 

 

http://i.imgur.com/1pq7zcJ.png

 

http://i.imgur.com/6RxAXVY.png

 

I have earlier progress pics I'll post up later, but I plan on giving at least Karandras and Fuegan a similar treatment. 

[Capt. Jack]

Good start to Jain Zar though the limb proportions need some seeing to.

 

Not sure Xenos are allowed on this forum though?!

[Corsovitt]

Good start to Jain Zar though the limb proportions need some seeing to.

Not sure Xenos are allowed on this forum though?!

Check out the News and Rumours forum with full details of the xenos forums and xenos being allowed in the forge.

 

On topic beautiful start on Jain Zar, looking forward to more of your green stuffing and converting goodness.

Edited June 18, 2017 by Bryan Blaire
Added helpful link, just in case!

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Xenos are allowed as of today! It was announced in the N&R forum earlier. :D  What is it about the limb proportions you don't like? I intentionally made her legs larger because I wanted her to have the build of a sprinter. Here's the post I put about her on the Reaper Minis forum a while back:

 

I imagine one day that GW will update the Phoenix Lord models but I'm tired of waiting and some months ago started on a Jain Zar custom figure that I worked on here and there between other projects. This year I decided I wanted to focus on the large amount of Eldar stuff I have that's been gathering dust for years and I'm going to be focusing on three Phoenix Lords in particular: Jain Zar, Karandras, and Fuegan simply because they are my favorites. I might end up doing all of them, but for now, I'll begin with Jain Zar.

So what did I want to accomplish with this? As much as I like the story of the Phoenix Lords, I have never liked some of their models even when they were still relatively new when I got into the game shortly after 3rd ed came out and now with two decades of newer, better models to outshine them, I feel like my sculpting and converting skills are at a point to tackle my own vision for them. Jain Zar's model is, in my opinion, the worst one of the bunch. The hair is crazy, the boots are ridiculous, and the pose makes the figure horribly unbalanced and prone to falling over. Aside from changing the pose, it occurred to me that the Phoenix Lords and their armor have been around since The Fall when the Eldar were still mostly one race. Once the they split, their cultures and technology evolved along different lines and I imagined that the armor of the Phoenix Lords should be a blend of the two and something unique among the modern aspect warriors that follow them.

Here's my first sketch of the pose idea I had with a little greenstuff prep work already on the legs:

 

 

And you can see the current status of the figure above.

 

I've also started on a Karandras:

 

 

And last left him trying out something on the helmet:

 

 

I'm going to build a custom claw for him since I can't find an existing one that I like.

[Augustus b'Raass]

Sometimes I can't keep up here. 

The eldar look great but of course your work on the Bloodthirster interests me the most. I like how you're taking the "I'll beef up the old metal BT with added muscles" and turned the switch to level 9000, here. :D If I can give you one piece of advice: when sculpting deltoids, it's better to do the biceps and triceps first, as the deltoids really are flaps over the bi- and triceps, which are connected to the Humerus bone between those two arm muscles. So the stiae should all face to that connection point - something like this:
http://i35.photobucket.com/albums/d185/mkruijff/Naamloos_zpsp72r6fl5.jpg

The striation of the musles isn't too deep right now, btw, and will look fine if you don't paint it like bare flesh, trust me. :) 

[Capt. Jack]

The lower legs and the right arm look a little small compared to the rest of the model. As though the upper arm needs slightly extending as well as the shins and the feet the match.

 

In the early WiP photo she looks much better proportioned.

 

I actually rather like Karandras though! Keen to see what direction you go with him!

[Brother-Chaplain Kage]

Sometimes I can't keep up here. 

 

The eldar look great but of course your work on the Bloodthirster interests me the most. I like how you're taking the "I'll beef up the old metal BT with added muscles" and turned the switch to level 9000, here. If I can give you one piece of advice: when sculpting deltoids, it's better to do the biceps and triceps first, as the deltoids really are flaps over the bi- and triceps, which are connected to the Humerus bone between those two arm muscles. So the striae should all face to that connection point

 

Yeah, this old metal 'Thirster is a bit weedy for my tastes and I'm gonna proper Hulk him out. That's good advice on the delts and I did know that but I was really tired from work.

 

The old... 3rd edition(?) Bloodletters were awesome imho and I like their muscly build a lot more than the gangly, skinny ones we have now and they influenced my take on the 'Thirster. Here's the ones I mean, shamelessly borrowed from Dave Taylor.

 

http://i.imgur.com/vZ98fzP.png

 

So, if you want to accept my challenge for a Greater Daemon match I'll stop working on him for now. I probably should anyway because I have 2 figures to finish for the Tale of Gamers and I'd like to get one done for the Legio B&C event that also ends this month.

 

On a related note, why is the older GUO and KoS still available for the "affordable" price of $57.50 USD while your only choices for a Thirster and LoC are more triple that? I suppose because the giant 14" models of the GUO and KoS aren't out yet?

Edited June 18, 2017 by Brother Chaplain Kage

[Joe]

I'm relatively certain the GUO and KoS are just an excessive amount of backstock that Geedub are angling to clear as opposed to stuff that's been produced fresh; pewter prices in the UK are a little on the dire side, last I checked. It is mind-boggling just how much more expensive the new plastic Greater Daemon's are over their metal counterparts, although to be honest, they are gorgeous...

 

Seeing the old Bloodletters does leave me rather nostalgic, though. I sort of miss that style; that and the old Bloodthirster as it appeared in Warhammer: Mark of Chaos' opening cinematic.