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Picked up a couple of job lots of Tyranids recently, and thought it'd be fun to paint them up, now that I'm getting back into playing 40K.

First up is a Hive Tyrant conversion that someone else built, back from the days of endless Biomorph customization. This guy looks like he has extra armor (extended carapace, I guess) and is coming up from underground.

I love painting in bright colors and with lots of contrast. So I thought I'd do the Nids in that style.

Very nice, welcome to the Nid blog community

What is that?

It's a hive tyrant conversion that I picked up as part of a job lot of tyranids . I thought it had a lot of character so I left it as-is. I think it was meant to be an Extended Carapace tyrant, with maybe some sort of burrowing rule. I don't know. But I like the way the dude built it. LOL.


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 Ratius wrote:
Very nice, welcome to the Nid blog community

Thanks! I really enjoy your Hissy thread. Good stuff!

More Nids in the works.

Wanted some Zonathropes, but they're stupid expensive, so in the proud tradition of Nids adapting to their environment, I made my own out of some beat up Ravener bodies and some extra head-plates from the Trygon/Mawloc kit. I love the way the spines look like they fold down or extend when the Zoanthrope is blasting someone, and kind of fold back in when it's in defensive mode.











And some tiny beasties to add to the swarm...

These guys are looking superb! Will be following this one closely!

Bunch of Spore Mines, done. I like how the high contrast between the sandy yellow and the pastel blue looks on these little guys.






And a comparison, side-by-side with the Hive Tyrant.

First Carnifex is nearly done. Just need to do the last layer of blue on the skin, and then finish off the base.

Your tyranids are very striking. The blue and sandy yellow are a great combination. I'm impressed with your zoanthrope conversions. Not being familiar with the model line I thought they were the actual kit until I read your explanation. I agree with you on the hive tyrant conversion. I don't know what the original converter was going for, but it looks awesome nonetheless. Looking forward to seeing more from you. Keep at it.

Ha! Same here, I thought you just had an older and newer version of the zoanthrope mini. Those spines you added are particularly cool.

Thanks for the feedback on the Zoanthropes. Those spines are part of the headplate and jaws from the Trygon/Mawloc kit. Not sure which one they're supposed to go on, actually. I found them in a big bag o' bits that came with the second-hand 'nids.


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Done with the first Carnifex!

Awesome looking big beasties (and their little mates). Zoanthropes and Swarms for March, perhaps?

Tryon and at least 2 Zoanthropes, if all goes well.

Finally getting back to work on some Tyranids. Here's some WIP shots of a Trygon. Got the armor plates done, now to finish up the lighter blue on the skin, and the claws.

Trygon looks great. I can see the time and effort you've taken to streak every one of those dorsal scales and other pieces of chitin, but the final effect is really effective and gives a great organic look.

Thanks. Each scale is basically 5 layers... base, sloppy wash in ink, then three passes with progressively lighter streaks.

I think it's going to look really nice on Tyranid Warriors, once I get around to those guys. Not to mention Genestealer Cult models with bright-blue tinged skin, and clothes/armor that mimic the yellow/brown scales of the actual Nids.

So close to having this Trygon done. SO many layers of highlights..... really looking forward to painting some smaller models.