Brother Christopher's Purple Marines Project

[Brother Christopher]

I wanted to do the reasonable thing and wait with another post till I get everything ready conversion-wise but I'm too frustrated with how long it takes to wait. As such, with this very special frustration-fuelled eagerness, here's a sneak peak of what you can expect of my Assault Squad:

 

 

And something that I'm particularly happy with, a scratch-built combat shield (the round notches were particularly challenging, but I thing I managed to get them right):

 

 

Disclaimer: I'm quite happy with how these guys turned out. For once, I feel like I managed to fully realise the scope of what I had planned for these conversions.

The concept included:

1. Enlarging the vents on the jump packs to make them closer to the (frankly superior) Firstborn equivalents.

- I didn’t want to use the old jump packs, as I actually prefer the added bulk of the newer ones (the older versions, for whatever reason, look a bit off on Primaris bodies).

- Even though I’m not a big fan of the new design, I wanted to maintain some visual consistency across the force—especially elements like the round component on the back of the pack, as well as the additional nozzles and wings—in case I expand the squad with more jump pack Primaris in the future.

2. Avoiding the heel-mounted nozzles, which I find both impractical-looking and, frankly, a bit silly.

3. Adding harnesses—this turned out to be the most challenging and time-consuming part of the project.

4. Modifying the knees/greaves to introduce more variety, which was especially important since these are ETB minis with some repeated poses.

5. Altering the abdominal armour on some of the marines.

6. Building a sergeant with a power fist and combat shield as a homage to the first Assault Squad I ever bought (from the SM Battleforce).

 

 

***

 

Once again, let me emphasise: I’m really excited to share these minis with you. I just need a bit more time for the last batch of GS work to cure before I can take proper photos. Now that the project is essentially finished, I’m happy with how it turned out.

 

As usual, though, there were some frustrations along the way. I have to admit that these attempts at “fixing Primaris” and doing GW’s work for them are pretty draining. It took me three full hobby days to do everything I had planned, and despite the cool end result, the process itself felt rather unrewarding. In trying to make the minis look cooler (i.e. the way I think they should have looked in the first place), I ended up cutting into expensive plastic, compromising on detail in some areas, and sinking hours into the process.

 

What really caught me off guard was how tedious the abdominal armour modifications turned out to be. I’m apparently just not quite skilled enough for this kind of fine, fiddly work - and the end result is a bit rough in places, too.

 

The bottom line is this: I think I’m getting too old for this kind of approach and need to re-evaluate my priorities in the hobby. So, I’m making a personal vow here (and you’re all my witnesses): no more conversion-heavy projects like this in the future. I’ll limit modifications to the bare minimum—mostly leg armour tweaks and very simple kitbashes for a single squad (basically the Space Wolves approach)—and focus instead on the part of the hobby I actually enjoy the most: painting.

 

As a final complaint, it’s frustrating that I’ve ended up in a similar situation for the second time—stuck with models that feel “outdated.” The first time was with my Firstborn Marines.

 

Now, I'm stuck with a bunch of MkX Marines. As I’ve mentioned elsewhere, it sucks to be a loyalist. The modern CSM kits are so much more varied and fun than the standard MkX that's virtually identical across the range.

 

[Rusted Boltgun]

Wow. Looking forward to seeing these realised - those vents came out really well. The straps and emblems on the torso and shield look cool too.

[Brother Christopher]

Thanks! Just to be clear: the vents are made with a press mould and copied from the OG Jump Packs. Same goes for the connector in the middle of the chest. The bloody straps... were not, though.

[Dr_Ruminahui]

That's super clean green stuff molding - fantastic work.  Straps are also super crisp.  Plus, nice work on those shield notches - much cleaner and more even than my own attempts at same, despite being far smaller in scale (mine were on my knight gatling cannon shields).

 

Seems like we had similar weekends - both working on projects that were time consuming, unsatisfying to do, but with which we are happy with the results.

 

And you should totally go chaos - we know you like the aesthetic, you already have the purple... plus, free tentacles! 

[The Pounder]

Great work!

 

I’m always amazed at people’s sculpting abilities, I’m all thumbs when it comes to green stuff!!

[Brother Christopher]

8 hours ago, Dr_Ruminahui said:

That's super clean green stuff molding - fantastic work.  Straps are also super crisp.  Plus, nice work on those shield notches - much cleaner and more even than my own attempts at same, despite being far smaller in scale (mine were on my knight gatling cannon shields).

 

I think I can say that since I wanted to get the best moulds as possible, this was my first time I did it properly. I made a little frame out of LEGOs to prevent the outside of the mould from expanding, paid attention to the quality of the mould (I used tat Instant Mould thingy that I've mentioned in your thread), redit it a couple of times since the grating on the air intakes had defects. 

 

For the notches, I had had an 'easier time' - the size was a benefit this time since it allowed me to cheat. I basically used the drills to get the circular bits done. I wouldn't have been able to achieve this with a blade.

 

8 hours ago, Dr_Ruminahui said:

Seems like we had similar weekends - both working on projects that were time consuming, unsatisfying to do, but with which we are happy with the results.

 

You're absolutely right. I also think that it's worth mentioning, that seeing others' work posted online is very entertaining. 

 

8 hours ago, Dr_Ruminahui said:

And you should totally go chaos - we know you like the aesthetic, you already have the purple... plus, free tentacles! 

 

I probably will. Especially given how much more 'love' you're getting from GW. I mean, it's probably ironic or even outhright wrong to state this. I understand that Chaos has been left hanging for many years by GW and there's not comparing the Chaos ranges and Primaris.

 

I just want to emphasise that the few kits Chaos gets are 'done properly' - they're varied, fun, and somehow feel more like newer versions of old concepts and aesthetics. On the other hand, Primaris are kinda bland. They're a redesign instead of a reimplementation (whatever that means)

 

23 minutes ago, The Pounder said:

Great work!

 

I’m always amazed at people’s sculpting abilities, I’m all thumbs when it comes to green stuff!!

 

I'm rubbish too - my only GS 'skill' is copying things with press moulds. I can't properly sculpt and, I think, that these straps on these guys are the best I can do detail-wise. And it's taken me a long, loong time to get here.

 

***

 

And here are the promised photos.

Whole squad:

 

Jump Pack design - as you can see, I've enlarged the air intakes by copying bits from the Firstborn packs and extended them to the sides with plasticard and GS. The sergeant will get a fancy aquila. 

 

And now for the individual models:

 

Please note the melta bomb, a homage to DoW2 and the old Assault Squad lode-outs. 

 

With the guy below, it seems that GW cheated a bit with the knee pad; after removing it, there was a huge gap - something that I haven't experienced before with these sorts of modifications. I decided to add some ribbing.

 

 

 

 

With the seargeant, the final position of the arms may be slightly different - they're tacked on at the moment. I also decided to slightly rotate the power first to get a better angle. Please note that I've added a pistol handle to the holster to... that's a bit pedantic but somehow him not having a gun (with a shield in one hand and a huge fist being the other one) bothered me.

 

And the inside of the shield - it's way more messy than the front:

[MoriyaSchism]

2 hours ago, Brother Christopher said:

With the seargeant, the final position of the arms may be slightly different - they're tacked on at the moment. I also decided to slightly rotate the power first to get a better angle. Please note that I've added a pistol handle to the holster to... that's a bit pedantic but somehow him not having a gun (with a shield in one hand and a huge fist being the other one) bothered me.

 

And the inside of the shield - it's way more messy than the front:

 

That looks great. I love seeing the old plastic Maximus helmet get used on models with the new increased scale. It finally looks right, it always seemed off to me on the smaller bodies. The rest of the squad looks great too. Nice use of the meltabomb too, shame it's absent in 10th edition.

 

Yeah, I agree with you about the knee flanges. It's what put me off from working on my batch of the easy to build Assault Intercessors. It's pretty shocking how many shortcuts they took. Mark X models with the separate shin armour are the best to convert. Glad that the Space Wolf kits follow that pattern but it's disappointing both varieties of Assault Intercessor don't have the same design. After converting some Primaris models to the classic standard I understand how you feel, but personally I'm committed no matter how slow or fiddly it is. Granted I don't really have many opportunities to play so time is not really an issue. My biggest issue is that I spend too much time fiddling with the weapons because I dislike 90% of Primaris guns. 

[W.A.Rorie]

 Was not expecting this much awesomeness this morning @Brother Christopher 

[gaurdian31]

These look amazing! Love the Maximus helmet on the sergeant. I think that's what that one is. Anyway lovely work and the sculpting is superb! Great work all around, but I will say I don't think the inner facing of the shield looks sloppy, I think it looks just like the actual one. 

[Brother Christopher]

It's an absolute pleasure to keep you entertained ;) I'm super glad you like these. I've been AFK for some time due to a short holiday break but I think I'll be back on the hobby horse. I want to prime these guys this week and try a new approach, using contrast/speed paints. I'm quite looking forward to it - in principle, it should work. Basically I want to do some slop-chop with with a sponge.

 

But knowing me, I won't get it right the first time and will get discouraged quickly and get back to the old, time-consuming method. We'll see!

 

On 4/8/2026 at 3:19 PM, MoriyaSchism said:

Yeah, I agree with you about the knee flanges. It's what put me off from working on my batch of the easy to build Assault Intercessors. It's pretty shocking how many shortcuts they took. Mark X models with the separate shin armour are the best to convert. Glad that the Space Wolf kits follow that pattern but it's disappointing both varieties of Assault Intercessor don't have the same design. After converting some Primaris models to the classic standard I understand how you feel, but personally I'm committed no matter how slow or fiddly it is. Granted I don't really have many opportunities to play so time is not really an issue. My biggest issue is that I spend too much time fiddling with the weapons because I dislike 90% of Primaris guns. 

 

Yeah, that's pretty much on point. My biggest regret is that we didn't get the limited variety (albeit welcome one!) that the Space Wolves refresh have from the get-go. It's absolutely shocking how boring the Primaris line is.

 

Yet, we're here, doing our best to try to fix it... just to paint some more Space Marines :D

 

I've accepted most of the weapons for this Project. But, once again, I have to agree - the new designs aren't great. I would have preferred just a redesign of the older stuff. I'm okayish with the longer bolters, Primaris melta variants and the heavy bolt pistols. I would have preferred a redesign of the plasmas, pistols and flamers that are closer to the originals and closer to what we have across the other lines (IG, Chaos).

 

But that's one of the reasons why I don't treat these guys as Primaris-Era-Marines. They are just Space Marines from the Dawn of War 2 era (I got into 40k around that time) from an alternate universe. As such, they exist in their own pocket and I don;t have to worry with keeping up to date with the lore or don't have to change my head canon. 

 

On 4/8/2026 at 5:19 PM, gaurdian31 said:

I don't think the inner facing of the shield looks sloppy, I think it looks just like the actual one. 

 

It was a tiny complaint - I just got a more rough finish with the putty. Overall, it's fine and I hope it'll be upgraded to 'great' once primed.

[MoriyaSchism]

10 minutes ago, Brother Christopher said:

Yeah, that's pretty much on point. My biggest regret is that we didn't get the limited variety (albeit welcome one!) that the Space Wolves refresh have from the get-go. It's absolutely shocking how boring the Primaris line is.

 

Yet, we're here, doing our best to try to fix it... just to paint some more Space Marines :D

 

I've accepted most of the weapons for this Project. But, once again, I have to agree - the new designs aren't great. I would have preferred just a redesign of the older stuff. I'm okayish with the longer bolters, Primaris melta variants and the heavy bolt pistols. I would have preferred a redesign of the plasmas, pistols and flamers that are closer to the originals and closer to what we have across the other lines (IG, Chaos).

 

But that's one of the reasons why I don't treat these guys as Primaris-Era-Marines. They are just Space Marines from the Dawn of War 2 era (I got into 40k around that time) from an alternate universe. As such, they exist in their own pocket and I don;t have to worry with keeping up to date with the lore or don't have to change my head canon. 

My biggest issue with the Primaris arsenal are the flamers, plasma and melta weapons. The flamers and melta rifles having a handguard that's never used because the other hand is always gripping some weird handle on top of the gun. The new plasma pistols just aren't cool and the Dark Imperium plasma incinerator design was cooler looking than the one in the multipart kit. I do like the heavy bolt pistols but not in the pistol role, they look more like carbines to me. 

 

You really pulled off the Dawn of War 2 style. I do the same thing with my Marines. I just want to explore the history of the setting with my miniatures. 

[Firedrake Cordova]

10 hours ago, Brother Christopher said:

I would have preferred just a redesign of the older stuff. I'm okayish with the longer bolters

Honestly, this is what I wished GW had done with the Primaris line as a whole. I find their weapons a bit too over-sized and cartoonish for my tastes (obviously not everyone does, and that's fine ). 

 

On the positive side, I really like where you're going with this project.  

[Brother Christopher]

11 hours ago, Brother Christopher said:

I'm quite looking forward to it - in principle, it should work. Basically I want to do some slop-chop with with a sponge.

 

But knowing me, I won't get it right the first time and will get discouraged quickly and get back to the old, time-consuming method. We'll see!

 

Yeah, so back to the old methods, I guess. The speedpaint method just doesn't work for me. Maybe if I'd practice more it would've been better but, I suppose, I don't feel like it. There's just something inherently messy about speedpaints on SM armour that I don't like. But I can't say that I didn't try.

 

8 hours ago, MoriyaSchism said:

My biggest issue with the Primaris arsenal are the flamers, plasma and melta weapons. The flamers and melta rifles having a handguard that's never used because the other hand is always gripping some weird handle on top of the gun. The new plasma pistols just aren't cool and the Dark Imperium plasma incinerator design was cooler looking than the one in the multipart kit. I do like the heavy bolt pistols but not in the pistol role, they look more like carbines to me. 

 

54 minutes ago, Firedrake Cordova said:

Honestly, this is what I wished GW had done with the Primaris line as a whole. I find their weapons a bit too over-sized and cartoonish for my tastes (obviously not everyone does, and that's fine ). 

 

I agree with you guys. The meltas generally are okay but I don't get the obsession with using the top-mounted handle on guns that's so prevalent in the Primaris design language.

 

I feel that to a degree, GW has a bit of a split personality with Primaris and their guns. On the one hand, subjectively, the base bolt weapons are okay for the larger Primaris bodies. They seem smaller than they are and make the models more 'realistic' or 'well-proportioned.' Oh, and take the atrocious new bolt pistols with their small mag that makes them actually fit in a holster. A move towards feasibility and realism, right?

 

On the other hand, there are the special guns that are even bigger. And I think the expression used by Firedrake - cartoonish - fits here well. And the rifle-sized pistol varieties (heavy, plasma, volkite). And then they decided to add holsters to store this guns in that dangle between the marines legs. Surprisingly, these elephant-sized holsters (I feel) aren't that bad on the ETB Assault Intercessors but are horrendous on Bladeguard models. Maybe it's because of the bling and the holsters are breaking the clutter event horizon? Who knows.

 

8 hours ago, MoriyaSchism said:

You really pulled off the Dawn of War 2 style. I do the same thing with my Marines. I just want to explore the history of the setting with my miniatures. 

 

Thanks! I really have to check your things out. Focusing on things not in the 40k mainstream seems to be a healthy way to approach the hobby. After all, 40k has grown out of proportion - it's quite ubiquitous and tackles too many hobby areas. I can't imagine to keep up with that.

 

Personally, I'm going through another hobby crisis of faith. My motivation recently plummeted after all the time it took to convert these guys and when I realised how many more space marines I have queued to paint. But I'm fairly confident it'll pass.

 

I think a contributing factor is/was that I perhaps hoped for 11th edition to be something that'll pull me into gaming. Somehow the drip feed of info about the new edition dampen my spirits. Instead of building any hype, it annoys me.

 

I like to think of myself as being a rational person so I will wait till the release of the edition before making my mind up but judging from the 10.5 vibes, I guess I won't get back to gaming. And if no gaming is expected then I ask myself - why bother?

 

To end on a positive note: most of the stuff I do now is worth it thanks to this community. Sharing progress with someone is pretty important for me in my otherwise solitary hobby landscape.

[Firedrake Cordova]

2 hours ago, Brother Christopher said:

And if no gaming is expected then I ask myself - why bother?

I suppose the obvious answer is because painting models is fun and relaxing, and a shelf full of painted minis looks cool..?  

 

On a slightly less flippant note ... have you looked at the skirmish games like Kill Team or 5 Parsecs: Tactics? I don't know if the differing ruleset may be more your taste?

Edited April 15 by Firedrake Cordova

[MoriyaSchism]

1 hour ago, Brother Christopher said:

I agree with you guys. The meltas generally are okay but I don't get the obsession with using the top-mounted handle on guns that's so prevalent in the Primaris design language.

 

I feel that to a degree, GW has a bit of a split personality with Primaris and their guns. On the one hand, subjectively, the base bolt weapons are okay for the larger Primaris bodies. They seem smaller than they are and make the models more 'realistic' or 'well-proportioned.' Oh, and take the atrocious new bolt pistols with their small mag that makes them actually fit in a holster. A move towards feasibility and realism, right?

 

On the other hand, there are the special guns that are even bigger. And I think the expression used by Firedrake - cartoonish - fits here well. And the rifle-sized pistol varieties (heavy, plasma, volkite). And then they decided to add holsters to store this guns in that dangle between the marines legs. Surprisingly, these elephant-sized holsters (I feel) aren't that bad on the ETB Assault Intercessors but are horrendous on Bladeguard models. Maybe it's because of the bling and the holsters are breaking the clutter event horizon? Who knows.

The carbine line is good, it's the only Primaris weapon family I use in my army basically unmodified. The heavy bolt pistol is cool, but I dislike the short magazine so I might give it a larger magazine and some sort of optic. A converted heavy bolt pistol into a short rifle could be a good weapon for an on foot vehicle crew to use as an objective or a VIP for a narrative game. The massive holsters on the assault intercessors are a perfect fit for the old Sunfury plasma pistol so I kept that on my Codicier conversion. It's funny how the big holster is too small for the new Plasma and Volkite pistols. Most of the time I either shorten it or I use the holsters from the Intercessor/Hellblaster/Desolator kits to represent an old bolt pistol in the holster. 
 

I clip off the muzzle and coil area of the Primaris plasma pistol like this. Maybe the muzzle will come in handy one day. 

[Brother Christopher]

On 4/15/2026 at 11:08 AM, Firedrake Cordova said:

I suppose the obvious answer is because painting models is fun and relaxing, and a shelf full of painted minis looks cool..?  

 

 

I have a bit of an unhealthy "live in the moment" attitude. As such, I sometimes forget how fun painting can be. Especially when I'm stuck doing edge highlights that may be a bit soul-crushing. But I just like the aesthetic they offer, as time-consuming as it is. 

 

On 4/15/2026 at 11:08 AM, Firedrake Cordova said:

On a slightly less flippant note ... have you looked at the skirmish games like Kill Team or 5 Parsecs: Tactics? I don't know if the differing ruleset may be more your taste?

 

This notion is starting to grow on me, yes. But I haven't heard of the latter game you mentioned.

 

My biggest gripe is that the smaller games don't really justify having a force of 50-70 marines and heavy tanks :D

 

@MoriyaSchism

 

I don't know how I've kept on missing your threads. There's a whole lot of awesome. Congrats. I envy your patience with the more ambitious conversions. 

 

On 4/15/2026 at 12:26 PM, MoriyaSchism said:

The heavy bolt pistol is cool, but I dislike the short magazine so I might give it a larger magazine and some sort of optic.

 

That's what I'm planning to do. I hope that they'll pass for regular bolters for my bolter&chainsword squad.

 

On 4/15/2026 at 12:26 PM, MoriyaSchism said:

It's funny how the big holster is too small for the new Plasma and Volkite pistols. Most of the time I either shorten it or I use the holsters from the Intercessor/Hellblaster/Desolator kits to represent an old bolt pistol in the holster.

 

Haha, I haven't noticed that the holster are too small. I just assumed they most be the right size, especially considering how massive they are.

[MoriyaSchism]

1 hour ago, Brother Christopher said:

@MoriyaSchism

 

I don't know how I've kept on missing your threads. There's a whole lot of awesome. Congrats. I envy your patience with the more ambitious conversions. 

 

 

That's what I'm planning to do. I hope that they'll pass for regular bolters for my bolter&chainsword squad.

 

 

Haha, I haven't noticed that the holster are too small. I just assumed they most be the right size, especially considering how massive they are.

Thanks. I started in one of the clubs so it wasn't all that visible to the rest of the forum. I tend to work slow because I obsess over getting things just right and I'm bad at managing how much time I spend on certain aspects of the hobby. I also have way too many project ideas bouncing around my head so I'm never working on just one thing in a linear manner. Just as I was going to update again I cut my thumb open and ended up in the emergency room. I might invest in more electric tools to avoid future accidents. 

 

There's a bunch of Primaris bits that have a ton of potential. For example the top plate from the jump pack of the Suppressors can be used as a good housing for Tech-Marine servo arms and their helmets look like vehicle crew helmets. If I go through my pile of grey I'm sure I could think of more stuff. I think the Captain that comes with the Company Heroes set has a heavy bolt pistol with a scope already mounted on it. Most of the time I just don't bother with holsters for Marines with special weapon pistols, I just imagine they are mag locked onto the armour like in some of the books but I imagine something delicate like a volkite might need a protective holster. I couldn't get rid of the big holster on my Codicier because he was originally a snapfit Assault Intercessor for Kill Team and it was too much work for zero aesthetic difference. 

 

 

[Firedrake Cordova]

2 hours ago, Brother Christopher said:

But I haven't heard of the latter game you mentioned.

 

Ah ... 5 Parsecs From Home is a bit like Stargrave. The "Tactics" spin-off is the author's attempt to turn it into a skirmish game with multiple units, tanks, etc. I'll admit I haven't played the Tactics version, but 5 Parsecs From Home (and the fantasy 5 Leagues From The Borderlands) are quite popular.

[Brother Christopher]

Here's a quick update. Nothing exciting, more of the same - I suppose, I'm posting this to keep myself motivated than anything else. Just to prove to myself that the time spent amounts to something. I'd say that except the shoulder pads, the armour is done. So are the brown bits.

 

 

[Rusted Boltgun]

Keep at it @Brother Christopher, just think of the group photo at the end!

[W.A.Rorie]

Very nice

 

[gaurdian31]

I really like the jump pack harnesses, they came out really well! What color are you planning for the skull on the right one's harness?

[BadgersinHills]

Great work.

[Brother Christopher]

Thanks for the positive feedback! 

 

On 4/20/2026 at 10:06 PM, gaurdian31 said:

What color are you planning for the skull on the right one's harness?

 

That's a good question. I'm open to suggestions but I've been thinking something metallic, so silver or gold. I'll try to paint the helmets yellow, so I'll perhaps also go with gold to add some warmth to the minis.

[gaurdian31]

Gold would be my suggestion as well. Is the sergeant getting a yellow helmet or a different color like the green from the earlier sergeant?