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Hello Dakka,

I've been thinking about converting a Tau commander for some time now, searching the internet for some sort of inspiration.
then i saw this http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/512518.page by Resv. I was so impressed i thought i would give it a go myself, changing a few bits to make it as much my own as possible.

Other than a few weapon swaps and minor tweeks is my first real conversion. Its still very much a WIP so all opinions and comments are appreciated.

So Dakka please let me know what you think, and perhaps even some suggestions for changes and prototype names.

Good so far, though the rounded Dreadnought shin guards for the shoulder pads look a bit off.

I very much like it, has a very heavy feeling to it. I think the guns would look better if they were slung underneath the hands though, like shadowsun.

commissarbob wrote:Good so far, though the rounded Dreadnought shin guards for the shoulder pads look a bit off.

Perhaps i could find a way to use the same curved shoulders on the knees? That might make it tie together better.

Mr Nobody wrote:I very much like it, has a very heavy feeling to it. I think the guns would look better if they were slung underneath the hands though, like shadowsun.

I seriously hadn't thought of that, its a awesome idea, ill give it a go for sure. And it should be better for the magnets.

Thanks for the suggestions, more are always welcome!

great use of the stealth suit backpacks! I agree with the underslung guns. Otherwise 8.7/10!

In the process of adding the under-slung guns and some signature Tau aerials. Ill be sure to most some more pictures of the next stage and once its painted.

For the shoulder pads. First take all the rivets off them, you don't see any other Tau stuff with rivets.

Second, if you feel your hobby skills are up to it, you could carve a grooved pattern into those shoulderpads before painting to give them that definitive Tau look.

I really like where you are going with this though!

File/scrape the rivets off the shoulders. Will blend in better. Add a thins strips of plastic or GS to tie into the panel lines on the Tau armour, maybe? Or a raised disc of GS/plasticard to paint an icon on?

 JohnnyHell wrote:
File/scrape the rivets off the shoulders. Will blend in better. Add a thins strips of plastic or GS to tie into the panel lines on the Tau armour, maybe? Or a raised disc of GS/plasticard to paint an icon on?

I just happened to scrape the rivets off last night! Ill be sure to post a pic.
I really dont think my skills are up to carving lines into the pads that would look sharp enough and straight enough not to look terribad. One slip and it could go really wrong.
But perhaps a strip of plasticard across the top might add some definition and break up the curves?

Another option could be swapping out the curved shoulders for the more square Ironclad dreadnought Legplates, but these arnt easy bits to get hold of.

A circular piece of plasticard with the tau icon might be a good idea also.

I have also added the same curved armor to the top of the thighs to try and tie it in with the shoulders so they don't stand out so much and add more bulk to the model.

I haven't worked with plasticard before so it might be a good opportunity to give it a go.

I was thinking of putting it on the 60mm base? I was wondering what you guys though about that for game play, i know crisis suits are actually supposed to be in the 40mm, think it would cause problems?

Are there any larger Tau symbol decals that might look good on the shoulders? I think it is the smooth roundness of the pads that looks slightly off, so breaking that up with a tau decal might make it all tie together.

King Pyrrhus wrote:
Are there any larger Tau symbol decals that might look good on the shoulders? I think it is the smooth roundness of the pads that looks slightly off, so breaking that up with a tau decal might make it all tie together.

I cant think of any, I could use strips of plasticard across the width of the sholders. Perhaps 2 strips on each where they curve over if that makes any sense? Or order the ironclad shoulders to replace them. Getting just 4 of these would cost over £10

They would probably look good, but it seems like a lot of money.

Plasticard would probably work well.

Some of these transfers might work well on the shoulders:

Say the smaller ones in the third row: http://bitzbarn.com/oscommerce/catalog/images/TauDecals.jpg

Plasticard is pretty expensive, it would cost around the same to order the parts.

Not sure how adding decals would change the same of the overall shoulders though

In my opinion it's not the actual shape that is wrong, just the unbroken smooth surface which is a bit at odds with the rest of the model.
So having an emblem on that surface would no longer make it look different to the rest of the model that is very textured.
Like I said though that's just a suggestion.

Looks good so far. Definitely undersling the weapons. Maybe use bigger hands too. Maybe power fists?

New shoulder pads are in from the Ironclad Dread, under-slung guns installed. More pics tonight

 Joyous_Oblivion wrote:
For the shoulder pads. First take all the rivets off them, you don't see any other Tau stuff with rivets.

Second, if you feel your hobby skills are up to it, you could carve a grooved pattern into those shoulderpads before painting to give them that definitive Tau look.

I really like where you are going with this though!

You could do a groove pattern very easily by cutting up think plasticard and cementing it on to the shoulders. Give it an overlap like roof tiles and you can create a bit more Tau-ish squareness at the same time.

The Project continues! Was waiting for some parts fro the US (since bit stores, even online, in the uk are hard to come by and rarely have stock)

Made some modifications and sprayed him. Changed the shoulders to the Ironclad version, underslung the guns like suggested, added some signature tau aerials and a bonding knife to the chest.

Still little bits I want to change and of course give him a awesome paint job.

C&C welcome. Let me know what you think or if you have any suggestions

Excellent! Personally, I think those shoulders look much better and more "tau like"

Thanks for sharing and keep up the good work!

Agreed, the new shoulders look excellant!

Yeah the new shoulders really work on the model, it looks great.

Made a few more changes, added a couple more aerials and tweeked the head positioning.

Ill be painting this guy up in the next week or so. Ill be sure to keep you all updated with some fresh pics.

After a massive delay, the finished article.

Been thinking of changing the red to blue (Lightning blue) but overall very happy with the finish and my first real scratch build conversion.

Thanks for looking

P.S sorry for the camera quality. Maybe i can buy a decent camera if i stop spending all my money on warahmmer...just a thought