Carburetta the Scrapbot

A friend was scratch-building spaceships out of bits of household appliance, as you do, and I thought it would be interesting to try to make some kind of 40k creature out of the bits and pieces I had lying around. I had the idea for a battered-looking robot, where every part would have been repaired and replaced until there was nothing original left.

I found a pair of Space Hulk genestealer legs (without a tail or groin, somewhat worryingly) and built up from there. Barrels, bits of scenery, plasticard and the landing gear from a spacecraft made the body. The head is left over from a finecast elf, and always looked more like a sinister mask than a face to me. Just the kind of thing you'd stick on the front of a robot to put it deep in the uncanny valley.

And now for some paint in a rather optimistic attempt to tie it all together. I like the engine-type thing in the middle of it: purely by chance, it reminds me of a ribcage. I tried to paint the loincloth to resemble a set of blueprints. Perhaps this thing needs them in case it has to repair itself.

Side view!

And a rear view. Maybe the weird little shrine powers it.

So er, yeah. That was fun to make, even if I'm not wholly sure what I have actually made. I'm off to Cornwall for a few days. Normal service will soon be resumed.

Bodyguards

It's been a very quiet weekend and I've been able to make some more Necromunda guys. As well as building a model shed too boring to appear here (complete with simulated pigeon poo), I made two bodyguards for the noble family. They're based on Sedition Wars soldiers, with helmets from GW Dark Eldar scourges.

The guy on the right has a gun left over from some Tempestus Scions, and the woman on the left has a mixture of Empire and Skitarri parts for arms and weapons. Painting their armour was really difficult and I'm not a hundred percent keen on the result. Still, I like the overall effect. They're how I imagine the Emperor's Sardaukar troops from Dune to look.

And here they are with the rest of the family. I think I'll do a couple more, but I might just keep the colour scheme and the helmets depending on their role.

Given that I got my first actual request in the comments box from the last post, here is what the market stalls look like when they are assembled but not converted. They're pretty basic, but are a good starting point. Here's one (two) I didn't make earlier, together with a fat bloke holding a stick:

Guns, Portakabins and Cheap Meat (and thanks)

I've been writing this blog for a couple of weeks and I've had, at the last count, 279 page views. Wow! That seems an awful lot, even factoring in that about half of those are by me and a few might be bots/servitors. The weird thing is that people have actually looked at this blog who I haven't even forced or bribed into it. Three views from Australia! Two views from Ireland! Twelve from Slovakia! I find this quite flattering. Thanks for reading, all of you!

Anyhow, onwards before I sound like an Oscar acceptance speech. I've been making quite a lot of terrain recently, most of it bought from a Cornish company called TT Combat. It's laser-cut MDF, and quite simple, but can be made to look interesting if you're willing to put a bit of work in. Here are two market stalls.

Both of these were just shells, but with the right bits I was able to flesh them out (literally, in the bottom case). Incidentally, the sign reads "cheap meat" in Japanese, or at least that's what Google says.

I've also constructed this raised walkway and portakabin. It's a glamorous place, Necromunda. The portakabin was just an MDF model that I painted up, using the same sponge-dabbing technique that I use for vehicles because I'm too cheap to buy an airbrush. The walkway was a piece of very cheap vaccuum-formed plastic with various parts added from Mantic, Games Workshop and, er, Playmobil.

Although these probably aren't the most thrilling bits of design work you'll ever see, they do contribute to the run-down, industrial look that I'm aiming for, and will make the battlefield look more interesting. In particular, the walkway provides cover and will enable models to take advantage of the rules for being higher up (which seem to largely consist of falling off and getting hurt).

Well, enough terrain for now. Some people have to live in this grimy dystopia. Like this guy:

"Home again, home again, jiggerty jig!"

Meet the Kumquats

I thought I'd do a couple of different models for Necromunda over the weekend. Here are two members of a powerful family from higher up the hive: a pompous old man and his more practical (and dangerous) daughter.

This old guy was a resin model I found at a wargames show. I've no idea where he's from, but he's come up okay. The resin was very shiny and the undercoat didn't take to it terribly well. Anyhow, here's Sir Diddly Kumquat:

His daughter started off as a Hordes Skorne summoner. I cut off the head and arms and replaced them with Dark Eldar parts. She's very tall, but that comes with being having an aristocratic bearing (and a rather small gene pool). I give you Lady Influenza Kumquat.

Not messing around here.

I'm not sure if they're members of a gang or, more likely, dignitaries to be rescued or assassinated, but they could be the core of an interesting faction. Perhaps they could have a security team guarding them. Anyhow, I've started work on their bodyguard.

Mr Bump the Broodlord

Sooner or later, it seems that everyone has a go at converting this guy:

He's a plastic Games Workshop Nurgle Champion and seems to be hugely popular as a blank canvas for all sorts of conversion work. I've seen him turned into a space marine, a thug, a pirate, a demon and even a crazy hovering Baron Harkonnen type by Jacob Rune Nielsen here:

I decided to have a go myself. He reminded my of another chunky 40k model, the old Genestealer Patriarch. Back in the day, the Patriarch was a massive fat purple genestealer, like a cross between H.R. Giger's Alien, Don Corleone and Barney the Dinosaur. The thuggish, bulky Nurgle champion seemed like a good starting place to make my own patriarch.

I made him a new stomach and head out of green stuff, ridged like a tubby version of a purestrain genestealer's underside. I tried to make him look sluggish and menacing:

Then it was time to attach the arms. I took them from a very old - and slightly melted - Space Hulk genestealer.

I think he looks quite threatening in this photo. I'm not sure why he only wears metal boots, a shoulder pad and a loincloth, but that sort of outfit is hardly unusual in the 40k world. I often wonder how 40k characters sit down, or go to sleep. Anyhow, I gave him a (for me) detailed scenic base and got on with the painting.

And here he is, in all his seedy, dribbly glory. The thing dangling between his legs is a tail taken from a plastic skaven.

I showed this model to a friend of mine, who said "He looks like Mr Bump from the Mr Men". Since then, I've never been able to get the connection out of my mind. Thanks, mate!

Genestealer Cult Limo

There are worse things than gangs in the depths of the underhive. Far from the view of the authorities, the half-alien Genestealer Cultists lurk, scheme and distribute leaflets encouraging the gullible to join their ranks. The charismatic Magos uses his oratory and hypnotic powers to draw in the unwary. Behind the (not very) innocent facade, monsters plot to take over the city.

Back in the old days, you could have a Genestealer Cult army in Warhammer 40,000, and its senior members were allowed limousines. There was never an official model, but the army list contained this picture:

No doubt.

It's surprisingly difficult to find a model that has the right overall design and the chunkiness of a 40k vehicle. Most WW2 armoured cars look too sensible. However, I stumbled upon this model of an armoured car from the Spanish Civil War, made by the company Minairons:

These things were big. They look rather like a 1920's idea of the future, or perhaps a very primitive batmobile. Perfect for 40k!

I swapped out some of the wheels on the original kit, as they seemed a bit narrow for the feel I wanted. I bulked up the bonnet with Tau parts and added gun pods from an Ork fighta, as they had the same smooth look as the rest of the car. The organic-looking things at the end of the wheel arches and the scrollworked bit above the radiator grille are from Dark Eldar talos kits.

The turret that came with the kit felt a bit excessive (for an alien pimpmobile, which is saying a lot). A sort of pulpit where the Magos could address the masses seemed more appropriate. The one I used came from a High Elf chariot. Again, I chose it because it had a similar organic shape to the main vehicle.

All ready to roll through the mean streets of the underhive. It just needs some crew...

Today's Column

Not the most dramatic terrain piece in history, but someone could hide behind it. The angel is a Reaper Bones model, the plinth came from GW's Garden of Morr set (a great kit - get one before they discontinue it, because it's too good for Fantasy Battle now) and the base was taken from a Mantic model. So there you go. Enjoy.

I'm currently working on some more terrain for Necromunda, including a couple of market stalls. More to follow!