The Lichborne - Homebrew Warband

[Volgon]

Thanks @Tallarn Commander, I think I can get the blending even smoother. The shoulder pads and the right (unarmed) arm came out really well, but that was early on in the project before I tried stippling so unfortunately I didn't write down exactly my process The other areas I blended like on the rear half of the mini and the shin armor were done with stippling, and while I think they are pretty good for visual interest, I would still prefer a smoother blend like on the shoulders.

[SirTainly]

These are looking really sharp, I do like seeing Nightlords done as well as these.

[Volgon]

Appreciate it @SirTainly! These guys are actually just renegades, not related to an existing force at all. but I get the confusion! The Nemesis Claw Visionary from my previous post is a proxy/counts-as, I just like building various forces and units with the aesthetic of my homebrew warband. 

 

I've always loved the Cursed Founding so the lore I've come up with for them is they are a classic case of a Cursed Founding chapter gone rogue. They get confused for Night Lords more than any other faction, but Night Lords are my favorite traitor legion so I guess I have a type!

Edited March 31 by Volgon

[Volgon]

Hey all, been a bit since I've posted any updates. I'm currently working through a painting project. It's not a conversion I've posted before; a kitbashed but basic Marine that I've used it get a lot of practice in with blending and volumetric painting. It's been slow going, about 2 months now since I started as I've been going long periods without picking up a paintbrush. However it is nearing the end, so hopefully I'll have some photos to post soonish. Other than that, I've been doing a bit of kitbashing. I worked on a Fantasy/Sigmar version of my warband's lord, then tore it down and rebuilt it into something I like better. You may have seen me post the original version on a few of the Warhammer subreddits. He's very recognizable (if you've seen the 40k version posted earlier in the thread) as they share a lot of the same parts and general design aesthetic.

 

As for 40k stuff, one character I've been itching to finalize and paint sooner rather than later is the warband's First Captain and master of the Terminator cadre. If the Archlich is Horus Lupercal, this guy is Abaddon, which is a bit ironic as this conversion was actually an Abaddon proxy for the longest time. Within the last few months, though, I had been thinking of changing him up a bit, as if I were to ever field the army using CSM rules I'd want the Archlich to function as the Abaddon proxy rather than this character. I didn't want the aesthetic to confuse him for something he's not: Terminator armor, large base, sword and claw?  That's Abaddon right? A squad of Terminators with shields is on my short list of conversions to do so it only fits that their leader has a similar loadout.

 

He uses a pretty similar pose (though reflected) to another one of my characters a few posts back, but honestly it's such a cool look that I had to use it again. It's not completely identical so I don't think it will bother me too much There's still a lot of detail cleanup to do and adding extra greeblies but I think this will mostly be the final iteration.

 

[Volgon]

Done about all I can for now, etsy seller sent me the wrong helmets twice so waiting for those to come in + do base and finished. Took me forever to complete this guy but happy with the result. Felt like I learned a lot about blending in general and also worked on my black recipe some. Not sure the black recipe is worth the extra time; you can see the volumes on the chestplate and the right thigh. It's tough for me because the look I want (VERY matte black) and what is visually interesting  and noticeable (high contrast, using lots of colors that are less black and more grey or blue, bright shining areas like in NMM) are basically at complete odds. I'll keep at it; I like the way the chestplate and thigh came out so if I can replicate that effect everywhere I think I'll be happy.

 

[Volgon]

Hey all, got my new helmets in and they look awesome! Have it primed but not painted yet, I'll knock it out at some point. In the meantime, I've been kitbashing more as I've got that creative bug again. I've been working through my Epic Hero proxies. I've mentioned before that as I expanded the scope of this project from just a kill team to a full army, I'm building under the pretense of using either Black Templars or Chaos Space Marines rules. Luckily those two armies have more of an overlap than you would expect. The Archlich, leader of the warband, is my Helbrecht (perfect proxy, power armored foot infantry with a large 60mm base which allows me room to include some scenic storytelling on the basing elements). The Emperor's Champion is up in the air; I'm considering using:

• a previous completed conversion (my Eviscerator Chainsword Marine I posted within the last few months on a 40mm base instead of 32mm)
• The Terminator Lord I posted a few weeks ago (50mm base, which the Terminator is on, is the same base that you can play Bayard's Revenge on), though mostly that's because it irks me that there still isn't a datasheet for a Terminator Captain with Storm Shield until GW releases Assault Terminators?
• a brand new kitbash which I am feeling out right now, though struggling a bit with what themes and pose I want him to have

Lastly is my Grimaldus proxy, the Soulsmith. I had previous made a version of and posted (I think) quite a while ago. Lately it was bothering me that it didn't feel quite kitbashed enough, like too much of the base model (a Black Templars Marshal) shown through, so I went back to the drawing board and have come up with these two variations so far:

 

Some context: the idea I have for the warband is they have a hybrid Chaplain/Librarian role, so I wanted this Grimaldus proxy to wield both a Crozius and display some sort of psychic prowess. He is the warband's most powerful necromancer behind the Archlich and I plan to use some of the wonderful kits in the Soulblight Gravelord range (either Barrow Guard or Deathrattle Skeletons) to function as his Cenobyte Servitors. There's still some detailing work to be done. I need to finish replacing the Ultramarine and eagle symbol on his chest with something, currently thinking an Ossiarch Bonereapers vertebrae crest as a necklace of some sort.

 

I am not sure which variation I prefer. I like the silhouette of the first more, and that Exalted Sorcerer arm is particularly cool as it looks as if he is in the midst of casting some sort of spell, but looks less overtly psychic than the second with the magical flaming hand. Still workshopping it; I could potentially sculpt some streaks of magical power cascading from his fingers like I did on my Balefire Acolyte. I also have an idea that makes him look as if he was mid cast raising the dead (a skeleton climbing out of the ground placed on the base in front of him), which the first pose would work better for, but I'd have to use a different scenic base than this one. The paint job would also help both poses have more of a magical flair; the runes on the shin pads are prime real estate for glowing effects and I could paint the hand on the first variation glowing or something, regardless of any extra gribblies sculpted on or not.

[madlibrarian]

On 6/19/2025 at 5:17 AM, Volgon said:

Hey all, got my new helmets in and they look awesome! Have it primed but not painted yet, I'll knock it out at some point. In the meantime, I've been kitbashing more as I've got that creative bug again. I've been working through my Epic Hero proxies. I've mentioned before that as I expanded the scope of this project from just a kill team to a full army, I'm building under the pretense of using either Black Templars or Chaos Space Marines rules. Luckily those two armies have more of an overlap than you would expect. The Archlich, leader of the warband, is my Helbrecht (perfect proxy, power armored foot infantry with a large 60mm base which allows me room to include some scenic storytelling on the basing elements). The Emperor's Champion is up in the air; I'm considering using:

• a previous completed conversion (my Eviscerator Chainsword Marine I posted within the last few months on a 40mm base instead of 32mm)
• The Terminator Lord I posted a few weeks ago (50mm base, which the Terminator is on, is the same base that you can play Bayard's Revenge on), though mostly that's because it irks me that there still isn't a datasheet for a Terminator Captain with Storm Shield until GW releases Assault Terminators?
• a brand new kitbash which I am feeling out right now, though struggling a bit with what themes and pose I want him to have

Lastly is my Grimaldus proxy, the Soulsmith. I had previous made a version of and posted (I think) quite a while ago. Lately it was bothering me that it didn't feel quite kitbashed enough, like too much of the base model (a Black Templars Marshal) shown through, so I went back to the drawing board and have come up with these two variations so far:

 

Some context: the idea I have for the warband is they have a hybrid Chaplain/Librarian role, so I wanted this Grimaldus proxy to wield both a Crozius and display some sort of psychic prowess. He is the warband's most powerful necromancer behind the Archlich and I plan to use some of the wonderful kits in the Soulblight Gravelord range (either Barrow Guard or Deathrattle Skeletons) to function as his Cenobyte Servitors. There's still some detailing work to be done. I need to finish replacing the Ultramarine and eagle symbol on his chest with something, currently thinking an Ossiarch Bonereapers vertebrae crest as a necklace of some sort.

 

I am not sure which variation I prefer. I like the silhouette of the first more, and that Exalted Sorcerer arm is particularly cool as it looks as if he is in the midst of casting some sort of spell, but looks less overtly psychic than the second with the magical flaming hand. Still workshopping it; I could potentially sculpt some streaks of magical power cascading from his fingers like I did on my Balefire Acolyte. I also have an idea that makes him look as if he was mid cast raising the dead (a skeleton climbing out of the ground placed on the base in front of him), which the first pose would work better for, but I'd have to use a different scenic base than this one. The paint job would also help both poses have more of a magical flair; the runes on the shin pads are prime real estate for glowing effects and I could paint the hand on the first variation glowing or something, regardless of any extra gribblies sculpted on or not.

I prefer the first one tbh. Looks more imposing and challenging. The second could be incredible with good OSL which I’m sure yoh could do, but is beyond my skills atm!

[Volgon]

@madlibrarian Appreciate the input! I agree that the second one demands at least an attempt at OSL, and that is not really something I am comfortable with doing over a really prominent part of the mini (the head, chest, etc).

[Volgon]

I got the last bit I've been waiting on today and I think I can call this conversion basically complete! I am super happy with how he came out. I added the necklace (a very fortuitous find in my bits box), swapped the Daemon Prince trophies on the tabard for some different ones, added the ghost piece onto the Crozius, and added the swirly spell bit to his off hand.

 

The only thing I'm not totally 100% on is the spiked skull on the shoulder pad. I thought that pad looked a little plain so I put that on there; I think I'd prefer to slap a scroll or something but I don't have one. Might look around in my bitz box to see if I have anything else that would work better (or just leave the pad plain) but it would be a minor change. Also need to clean up his chest plate some more, once I get some sanding sponges in I'll try to smooth it out.

 

Also the new Black Templar Execrator they revealed today looks absolutely perfect for the Emperor's Champion proxy I've been thinking about. Can't wait to pick it up, already have a pose in mind!

[Tallarn Commander]

A Wonderful conversion. Hopefully the spiked skull finds its way into a future project. 

[Dr_Ruminahui]

Very nice!  I feel that you can get some of that "raising the dead" feel with how you pose the "servitors" that accompany him - he certainly seems posed to that effect already.

 

I agree that the skull on the left shoulder isn't really working.  I see a few problems.  One, as mounted, it seems to high.  Two, the nail'spike coming into the pad at an angle seems off and would look more natural coming in perpendicular- that said, I don't know how you do that without rotating the skull, which itself would look unnatural.  Personally, I'm in favour of replacing it with your unit symbol (if that isn't already on the other shoulder) or a flat pad with some squad/persomal symbols - the flat plate might also be a good surface to practice some OSL from the hand magic.

[Volgon]

Thanks for the kind comments folks

 

@Dr_Ruminahui My initial idea was to have a skeleton climbing out of the ground on the base of the character himself, but that didn't work with the scenic base and even without the scenic base it was simply too crowded. I think you are onto something by using one of the servitors to fulfill the same function albeit separately. When I get around to working on them I'll try to make something work.

 

Glad the consensus seems to mirror mine regarding the spiked skull. I think I'll bin it for another project. I could try to flip the shoulder pads but it's going to require some modification either way I think. The resin pads I use for my chapter symbol are big (Gravis sized) and the crozius arm is a Bladeguard Veteran arm so it requires a very large pad unless I trim it down. The shape of the resin pad might not fit the other arm very well (it has some robe fabric sculpted onto it that I'd like to keep).

 

I've been thinking about paint schemes and I'd appreciate some input. Mainly about how to paint the spectral areas and the runic designs on the shin armors. I thought about trying to go for a magenta/purple fading into turquoise scheme but I think that might look a bit too synthwave and I'm also just not really sure how to approach painting that across the contours of the ghostly areas. Another, simpler idea I had was to paint the areas a turquoise (for reference, basically the same style as I painted on my Balefire Acolyte's spectral flames a while back or a generic Nighthaunt scheme) and paint at least the eyes on the Crozius spirits with a magenta or red glow; trying to evoke a malevolent spirit look. Last of my ideas would be to try a scheme similar to Be'lakor's sword on the box art: a turquoise fading to darker purples. The advantage of this is that there's plenty of tutorials I can use for that, and I've also been considering changing my basing scheme from simple brown mud to purples/magentas and turquoises (sort of mimicking Shyish, spectral bases you might see in AoS) which would tie the mini and the base together.

 

If anyone has any suggestions or examples feel free to drop them!

Edited June 24 by Volgon

[Tallarn Commander]

Hmm, I'm not sure about what would look best on the shin armor.

 

But for the spectral areas, I really liked the coldness and flickering feeling evoked by your Balefire Acolyte's spectral flames. I'm sure re-creating that color scheme on these spectral areas would look outstanding. Although the other schemes are worth considering.

 

Painting the eyes with a magenta or red glow would definitely work. Such an approached looked great on your test ghost.daemon you posted back on August 30th.

 

With regard to the Shyish-ish bases, that could work. But it also might either distract from the model or it might not provide sufficient contrast. It's worth trying out on some test models.

 

Have fun pondering your color options!

[Dr_Ruminahui]

My own take on the shins would be to do a limited glow effect using the same colours that you use for the magic in his hand and off of his rib-stick - tieing together that the rune on his armour are empowering or amplifying his magic.  I might (if I were a better painter) also go brighter (so, up to white) in the grooves than I might go on the magic itself.

[Volgon]

Thanks for the feedback @Tallarn Commander @Dr_Ruminahui!

 

Continuing my kitbash adventures, I've been thinking up some new non-character conversions. With the new Execrator and Crusade Ancient models inbound soon, I'll likely use those as the basis for some characters who will need retinues they can lead, and that means more Sword Brethren/Castellan/Crusader Squad proxies. I adore the Black Templars range and really enjoy Chaosifying the armor as best I can.

 

The first is the oldest of the three, a basic Initiate with 2H Chainaxe (proxy for a power fist, 2x power fists for every squad is a bit boring). I also stuck on one of the heads I will be using for all of my basic troops from now on (still need to paint one up for the previous power fist guy):

 

 

Next up I'm thinking is potentially a leader for a Sword Brother or Crusader Squad, or perhaps a Marshal (Captain). I originally used the body of this guy as the basis for my previous Dark Apostle conversion. The Sigmar Chaos Chosen arm is canted a bit which makes it look awkward, so I might try to fix that or just replace it with something else:

 

Last is just a Sword Brother:

 

He's missing some details like shin armor and a backpack because I was just seeing if I could make the pose work and I think it comes off pretty well. Meant to look like he is about to swing downward with the sword. 

Edited June 28 by Volgon