Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Yo dawg, I heard you liked skulls and gothic arches...

So, this is a project I started over two years ago with the intention of giving my Inquisitor and his retinue a ride they could be proud of. The initial idea was to just swap the turret for something more "techy" and add some bling. But, I've decided that that's not enough!



The plan is to make the whole thing servitor operated. No human crew. So, to that end, the turret will have no hatch and will be smaller. Also, plenty of optics and mechanical bits and bobs to replace the driver's viewsight and enhance the hull heavy bolter. I'll provide a mockup pic in a future update.



Removed the sculpted-on hydraulic detail that operates the rear ramp as well as the rear-facing viewports on the top hull. All this work would have been much easier if it hadn't already been assembled But, what're ya going to do, right? So, Inquisitors like to stay in touch, so I thought about some cool antenna arrays and a fleet relay/psychic beacon type apparatus. And, since all that stuff requires power, you need some cabling and plasma coils (or something).



The front headlights are on straight, it's just sort of an optical illusion. I made these by laboriously cutting down some bits from the Imperial Bastion kit. I think they look nice enough. I'll be continuing with the gothic arch theme throughout the build.

There you have it. More to come soon. Please comment and critique.

I'm also designing a tricked ut ride for my Inquisitor, so looking forward to seeing this for inspiration! Great start!

Oh, cool. Looks promising.

If you're looking for real life inspirations: Namer, Achzarit, BTR-T, PUMA IFV, and most of the most recent generation IFV's.

MCRobot wrote:I'm also designing a tricked ut ride for my Inquisitor, so looking forward to seeing this for inspiration! Great start!

Awesome. I hope you get some ideas from the blog. In turn, I expect you all to keep me motivated!

Meph wrote:Oh, cool. Looks promising.

If you're looking for real life inspirations: Namer, Achzarit, BTR-T, PUMA IFV, and most of the most recent generation IFV's.

Yeah, I have plans to add some real-world stuff like supplemental armor and extended fuel tanks. Looking at pretty pictures of tanks has always been an interest of mine since I was a kid. The challenge is to integrate practical stuff into the grimdark world of 40K without it looking too high-tech or modern.

Quick update!



I added some plasticard to smooth an unsightly gap above the rear ramp. Gotta putty the small cracks. I've also blue-tacked a bit from the Comms Array from the Imperial Bastion kit. The plan is for this to be some sort of astropathic/fleet relay beacon. I'll probably put a layer of plasticard between it and the ramp with some rivets and umbilical attachments. In case it wasn't obvious, the ramp on this thing would be sealed with only the hatch used for egress. There's a fluff reason behind that



I needed some arched vents for the top of the Chimera hull behind the turret. All those electronics and extra tech inside must make it hellahot, so I thought some ventilation would be needed. A simple GS press-mold of some CoD bitz should do the trick. FYI: The CoD sprues have tons of detail that can be press-molded for any kind of detail you'd want on a vehicle or building. Besides being brilliant kits in their own right, there's just so many cool icons and bling that it's worth keeping some sprues around for ideas.

Got a little more work done yesterday.



The fleet relay/astropathic beacon has been attached after I smoothed all of the rough spots on the back with putty. Still have more work to do back here. Going to add a bumper, handhold, AM sanction plaque, and security terminal. The Inquisitor's Whip is exclusive: instead of a velvet rope and dress code, you either know the right passcode or you get a bolt round in the braincase!



Slightly different view. There will be cables and umbilicals running to and fro as soon as I start mocking up the extended fuel tanks and plasma generators.

Here's the turret:



Since the Chimera is completely servitor controlled, a conventional turret is unnecessary. I took a Forgeworld sentry gun and cut off the base so it sits a bit lower on the hull. I've boxed in the gun mounting on the right side. I'll do something similar on the left side, but I think it will probably be asymmetrical. The right side will have the main armament magnetized, and I'll stick a storm bolter and a hunter-killer mounting on the left.



The new turret will be mounted farther forward than the original. The turret is just sitting on the hull for now. I wanna wait until I know exactly how wide the turret is before I pick its final spot.

I like where this is going. Subscribed.

I'm curious as to what you will do to show that the lasguns are servitor controlled. Added servo-skulls perhaps?

The thread name made me want to follow it alone, model is coming along nicely and has potential. Subbed.

Oh, I like the progress. I detailing is coming nicely together and that turret goes very well with the overall design.

Thanks for the kind words, fellas.

@Zogg
As of right now, the lasgun arrays are still crew-served. In real world IFVs, these weapons are usually only used by the mounted squad. Either because the vehicle is buttoned-up or as weapons of last resort against close-in bad guys. But, I'm not yet sold on them remaining stock

@uk_crow
Thank you, sir. Hopefully, I can keep the mojo going all the way through to paint and the final sealcoat!

@Meph
Thanks. I can't tell you how much I really didn't want to cut up that sentry gun It gave up its resin body for a good cause, tho.

Looks cool so far Keep it going man.

Looking great! I love the gothic arch searchlights and details and the comms array adds a lot of character.

 the_Armyman wrote:
Thanks. I can't tell you how much I really didn't want to cut up that sentry gun It gave up its resin body for a good cause, tho.

Yeah, putting a saw to a Forgeworld model always hurts a bit. But it got sacrificed for a good cause indeed!

@liquidjoshi and @weirdingway: Thank you both.

Another little update.



What you see here (the pics are a bit washed-out) are a mounted bumper using some plasticard tube with a diamondplate texture bit for added traction. There is also a handhold on the door made out of some bent paperclip. Next to the door is a servo-skull security system to gain access to the inside. Right above that is the automated boltgun sponson. Woe be to those who try to disturb the Lord Inquisitor's armored sanctum! The only thing left to do back here is the adeptus mechanicus sanction plate along with some rivets.



This is a rough mockup of the extended fuel tanks. The plasticard is all tacked together at the corners, and a piece of poster tack holds it to the hull. I think the size is perfect for a first attempt, but that shape will need a lot of work to make it look cool and fit with the rest of the vehicle. An identical tank will be built for the other side now that I have a template. Lots of work to go here





I boxed in the multi-laser side of the turret and added the back end of a SM searchlight. Next update, I'll post a mockup with the multi-laser attached. I have two different styles of multi-laser I can use, and I'm undecided as to which I like best.



Lastlly, another GS cast of some bits I plan to use for detailing, as well as a finished cast of the ad mech sanction that I still need to clean up.

Work continues. I'll have some more substantive updates this weekend. For now, a question: which turret weapon do you prefer?





This first multi-laser is the same one used in the Chimera kit. The second multi-laser is a cut-down version from the Sentinel kit. Post some replies and let me know which you like better.

Holding the gun sideways is always gangsta. Therefore, I vote for number 1.

 liquidjoshi wrote:
Holding the gun sideways is always gangsta. Therefore, I vote for number 1.

Seconded. Besides, it fits the form of the box better. The small "lip" thing that comes off the edge of the multilaser flows more cleanly into the horizontal than the vertical. The second picture just looks a bit jarring to me, no have no vertical lines for it to be reinforcing, abstract or not. Then again, I'm sitting in the middle of an architecture class discussing form and space correlation, so maybe I'm reading too far into it.

As it currently stands, I agree that #1 is the way to go. While I like the look of the #2 multi-laser, it doesn't fit well with the box. Now if the box were made to be narrower and taller...

Oh, and as for the lasgun arrays, if you don't want to make them servitor controlled but don't want to leave them stock, you could always replace them with hatches like this:
http://zinge.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&path=18_127&product_id=551

Awesome, I liked #1 best, too! The gun is beefier and longer, and the Sentinel multi-laser would have required more work

 Zogg wrote:

Oh, and as for the lasgun arrays, if you don't want to make them servitor controlled but don't want to leave them stock, you could always replace them with hatches like this:
http://zinge.co.uk/index.php?route=product/product&path=18_127&product_id=551

I've been toying with the idea of chopping off the existing barrels and replace them with hellgun barrels like the ones the 3rd Edition Stormtroopers were armed with. The lasgun arrays are a bit goofy, but they're also sorta iconic with the Chimera. I dunno. I don't really have any overarching plans, so as I work, I just sort of ad lib as I go along.

I like the sideways one but would cut of the tip and re-attach them so the angle of the front "lens"? is the same as in 2.

 Jehan-reznor wrote:
I like the sideways one but would cut of the tip and re-attach them so the angle of the front "lens"? is the same as in 2.

Hmm, it might just be the angle of the pic, but the tip of the barrel/lens on #1 is aligned to the vertical axis like #2, even though the barrel and support strut are aligned to the horizontal. That is, if I'm understanding you correctly.

Currently working on the extended fuel tank details. I had an idea to use an arch in the design, then promptly forgot that idea and started gluing stuff together I'll see if I can still incorporate it in without doing a bunch of demo on my existing work. An update with pics will be on Sunday.

Nice work. I will keep this in mind when I start scratch building some for my army as well as modifying some of the ones I got =D

 the_Armyman wrote:

 Jehan-reznor wrote:
I like the sideways one but would cut of the tip and re-attach them so the angle of the front "lens"? is the same as in 2.

Hmm, it might just be the angle of the pic, but the tip of the barrel/lens on #1 is aligned to the vertical axis like #2, even though the barrel and support strut are aligned to the horizontal. That is, if I'm understanding you correctly.

You are right the no vents must have confused me

@GamesEtc: Awesome. Blogs are all about feedback and inspiration.

@Jehan-reznor: No problem, dude. Thanks for the suggestion. We're on the same page

More progress:



Both fuel tanks are assembled. I've just tacked these on for now. I bulked them out with some more plasticard, and I even added mudflaps. w00t! I'll be doing some greenstuff work to give the tanks a chamfered edge. I'll also need to tie them in to the GW track guards so the transition isn't so jarring.

Right and left rear quarter views:





The admech sanction plate I made is too large, so I'm going to have to rethink that. Thanks for all the feedback and interest so far. More updates later this week.

Looks awesome Definitely something that a inquisitor could ride around in and command the entire battle field from (or maybe just have some tea and watch other people do the dirty work?)

Young Logan

 Young_Logan wrote:
Looks awesome Definitely something that a inquisitor could ride around in and command the entire battle field from (or maybe just have some tea and watch other people do the dirty work?)

Young Logan

Thank you, sir. I sort of imagine the Big Guy inserting himself into all kinds of frontline situations, sometimes arriving in the nick of time to save the day, other times departing at the last possible minute and leaving others to their fate. Such is the fickle nature of the Inquisition

I'll have another picture update later this weekend.