Friends of Queen Bee: Armiger leg pose coming together

[Macloren]

They’ll possibly be wildcats if it’s a heraldic chrest rather than like Mr Tiddles! :) The ‘Three Lions’ of England come from the Plantagenet kings and are actually Leopards. Cats is cats though right?!

 

Glad to see you picking this up again though Jeff! I was hoping you would. I’ve started working in mine now, though I didn’t start with a full reposition, happily I get to see how yours goes before I start mine! Lucky me!

[JeffTibbetts]

Big cats, little cats... Whatever. :D 

 

And thanks! The progress so far on the legs is very encouraging. I should be able to do some pretty radical reposes for sure. My biggest concern at this moment is the detail on the cap of the ball-joint for the hips. I may end up doing a press-mold and just remaking them. Seems like it would be simpler. But, that won't stop me from trying. Either way I'll document it all for people to use as a guide or cautionary tale. 

[JeffTibbetts]

Pic dump incoming:

After having made all the cuts I wanted to, I decided to do some test fitting and work on a pose. I locked a couple joints in place with plastic glue (Tamiya Extra Thin FTW) and used a bit of blue tack to mock it up. Let's take a look at the legs first.

This is the full range of motion you can get without 'breaking' the design. One leg is fully extended and the other is fully compressed. It's... Not as dramatic as one might hope.

I tried the legs with the extended one back and the compressed one forward and it looked really goofy. I think I'm going with this instead. This is still off since the hips are just fudged right now, but you can start to see the idea.

And then I had to add the body so I could see if the head would work. I knew I'd want the body leaning down almost like a shoulder barge. Here are a few shots.

I'm going to play around with the exact position of the back leg and also curl the toes to really show the sense of movement, but for now the extended leg is working for me and that's the harder part, in my mind.

I had to assemble enough of the torso to check the head movement, and then I tweaked the position to look up a bit since I know the body would be pitched forward to show the momentum. It was a super easy adjustment and looks great, IMO.

I think this is enough to prove the concept to myself. It's a bit of work, but luckily I didn't have to mess with the ankles at all! I did cut the peg just to get a bit more control but so far it's not even needed. Can't wait to start gluing this up.

Thoughts?

[Subtle Discord]

Strong start. I'm sure you'll agonize over it when the time comes but I'll just add to be careful not to overdo the extension of the rear leg. It's running, but it's still a giant freakin' robot! :)

[JeffTibbetts]

The legs are basically locked in place. If anything I may bring the rear leg forward a touch more. It'll look better once the foot is in place, I think, to get the sense of motion as that legs comes up. 

[Bjorn Firewalker]

Running poses! Awesome!

[JeffTibbetts]

Running poses! Awesome!

 

Just one will be running, I think. The other one I saved two of the same legs for, and I think it'll be a bit more static. I was thinking about a sort of power pose, like they're taunting someone. 

[Triszin]

when you like your posing, I'd pin the model. I've started to pin the leg/foot that is the main supporting structure, it really helps with the structural integrity

[JeffTibbetts]

I think I’ll have to do a little pinning for sure. These Knights are so top-heavy.

[KrautScientist]

Excellent work so far, mate! The shoulder charge look is definitely there! :)

[Battybattybats]

Oh yeah!

I was hoping this would eventuate. :D

[JeffTibbetts]

Haha. Glad you could join in, Bats!

[Mechanist]

Nice work there so far and based on the queen I'll be watching eagerly.

40k addict did some reposing of the new kits. not quite as detailed but he got some interesting poses out of the stock legs and green stuff at the hips.

http://www.40kaddict.uk/2018/04/imperial-knight-warglaives-in.html 

Plus he does some beautifully metal work when it comes to the way he layers and stipples on over a textured start point.

[JeffTibbetts]

Ah, nice! Thanks for passing that on. That's more than I've seen pretty much anybody else do so far. They've gotta be popping up now. It's been long enough. I'll keep an eye out for his painting. 

[Mechanist]

Hmm looks like he's procrastinating back to the bio titan. Might be worth digging into his history past posts for his full sized knights.

[Battybattybats]

I'm looking forward to how you weave a little story into these pieces, always one of the things i love most with your work.

[Augustus b'Raass]

 

Late to the party as always, but this time I'm going to sit this through and support this all the way!

[JeffTibbetts]

Thanks Auggie! 

 

Update: I've been off work all week so haven't been working on these. I did pick up a pack of various-sized beads with the idea of recreating the hip ball joint. We'll see if one is a close match to the correct curvature. 

[DuskRaider]

I expect to see a bee's nest somewhere on one of these as an homage to the Queen.

[JeffTibbetts]

I expect to see a bee's nest somewhere on one of these as an homage to the Queen.

 

Oh man! I may have to do this... 

[JeffTibbetts]

Had a chance to start the pose of the second Armiger. This is the one that will end up something like a 'power pose' at the end of the sprint. I've got the legs bluetacked together, and so far almost nothing has been converted. I did cut the tabs on the ankles, and adjusted the head to be looking slightly down.

I think the sense of weight is good. I wanted the torso angled back a bit, the hips splayed and the feet planted. The arms will add some needed drama as it's a bit boring right now.

The glue was a bit squishy still so I didn't want to mess with it too much, but I think it will also benefit from a bit of twist in the torso. Once it had started solidifying a bit I added that and snapped another pic.

And then I wanted to try shifting the head to the side as well. I just can't help myself...

Final pose isn't set in stone, of course, but I do like the way the legs look planned firmly and set out just a touch.

Thoughts? Care to weight in about the waist/head position?

[DuskRaider]

I like it, it gives the Armiger a braced stance. I'd say if you have the head looking to the left (which I like, it gives it a sense of motion) then put the weapon on the left as well.

[JeffTibbetts]

Yeah, I have to play around with the arms still of course. I also have the charging one of course and I figured I'd swap them around. Thanks for the input! 

[DaBoiKyknos]

If they are the little helpers of the Queen, are they ...drones?

 

^^ ;)

[DuskRaider]

Yeah, I have to play around with the arms still of course. I also have the charging one of course and I figured I'd swap them around. Thanks for the input!

I don't have the model and I'm too lazy to look at pics... do they have an elbow? Could you put the CC arms in an action pose or do they just hang there?