Blackadder's Lucius Pattern Warhound Titan

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**Ruglud**

How's about Lucie stomping and crushing an enemy tank / flyer?

Spoiler:

**The_Blackadder**

Yer watching too many Marvel comic movies, in the real world crushing a tank would be just about impossible.

Even if the the entire 350 tons of Warhound's mass were brought to bear on the tank, the internal structure of the tank would not be compromised.

Ruins Base # One:

First layer of cork and some ruins bitz that need to be trimmed to fit the base and allow a passage for the Warhound.

http://i.imgur.com/ylZb4Ph.jpg

Front view needs terracing and the foundation of the ruin needs raising.

http://i.imgur.com/bLtrooF.jpg

Side view show the difficulty of multilevel terrain.

http://i.imgur.com/Sostu8A.jpg

Rear view of ruin shows the Gothic arches need to be trimmed to allow the foot to pass

http://i.imgur.com/Ulx2qZT.jpg

Ditto.

http://i.imgur.com/dpN0ltb.jpg

All the tread work is virtually unseen.... but at least I know it's there.

http://i.imgur.com/kRHXBBJ.jpg

Anyone know the kit name and or number of these ruins; I can't find the item on the GW website.

**Theophony**

Those were the snap together building components from one of the starter boxes a few editions ago. If you need more pm me I'm pretty sure I have some in the bits basement.

**The_Blackadder**

I think I have two sets, at least the two major ruin structures are duplicated. I seem to have enough pieces; I was just curious about compliment sets.

**The_Blackadder**

Thanks, I actually have two sets of these ruins but I was just curious about the source.

A Learning Experience:

The following images are more FYI than instructions on how to make a base/diorama because I have little idea where I am going with these bases.

http://i.imgur.com/d7oez3V.jpg

I'm sure people more savvy with base construction can find errors I am committing with my preliminary work but I have madness to my methods.

http://i.imgur.com/u2HNYUZ.jpg

One thing I note on some of the ruins I see planted on bases is they usually do not have foundations. Even my mentor Jaro didn't allow that the building does not just sit on the ground but has a basement dug into the earth/bedrock whathaveyou so the building is anchored.

http://i.imgur.com/5j7CfOZ.jpg

So to allow for this I made fine cork angled strips that will be coated with fine sand to simulate a concrete footing.

http://i.imgur.com/3ZnO9Fl.jpg

In this final photo I show the foot print recesses for the Warhound that probably will be partially filled with debris so the Warhound will also be situated in the display rather than just floating scale inches above the terrain.

http://i.imgur.com/UdNqLed.jpg

None of this is to be taken as gospel but is just as I perceive it should be.

**Medium of Death**

3rd Edition starter ruins to be precise.

I really love that Grey/Blue you've got on the shin armour plates.

**The_Blackadder**

That's going to be a hard colour to duplicate being the last of my Flo-Quil Aero Gloss mineral spirit based paint.

Since I will be using it on both the Warlord and Reaver titans thanks for reminding me I have to come up with a suitable substitute.

**The_Blackadder**

RUINS:

A bit of an experiment here; I spent the better part of an hour making an octagonal ruin tower and felt there had to be an easier way. Fortunately I just had an oak workbench delivered that came with the usual environmentally unfriendly foam packing. Sheets upon sheets of 1/2 inch styrene foam that will outlast any of us by millennia.

Taking my utility knife with a pristine new blade; in a couple of seconds I had duplicated the labor intense tower facets with apropos distressed fractures complimentary to the cutting.

A couple more minutes gluing the foam to the base and below are the results. Note the white glue isn't even dried.

http://i.imgur.com/xO9IkJB.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/4RWNpDu.jpg

http://i.imgur.com/h1yogMR.jpg

Now obviously there is a downside to this simple procedure otherwise greater brains than I possess would have suggested it but until I hit this snag I'll proceed like Pollyanna.

**Theophony**

Nice work with the foam, is the white glue to prevent the pain from eating it?

**The_Blackadder**

Organized Entropy:

Who would have thought it would be so hard to create disorder; try as I might everything still looks too orderly. I have to thank Winterdyne for the idea to chop up sprues for beams and bricks but I need to go a few steps further to blur the sharp edges as the clean lines stand out too vividly;especially in image three.

http://i.imgur.com/8UMXnBb.jpg

The tree is a clean dried root from a weed I had growing on my patio and the major buttress components are sculpted packing foam (See above)

http://i.imgur.com/wpSeQdo.jpg

Believe it or not the black prime is direct from a toluene based aerosol paint spray can applied directly on the naked foam (Ha; he said, "Naked....") lightly for the first and second coat to stabilize the surface so the final coats do not dissolve the styrene foam.

http://i.imgur.com/o1sYq6Q.jpg

**Ruglud**

The_Blackadder wrote:Yer watching too many Marvel comic movies, in the real world crushing a tank would be just about impossible.

Even if the the entire 350 tons of Warhound's mass were brought to bear on the tank, the internal structure of the tank would not be compromised.

HULK SMASH

In 40k, it's the rule of cool that counts - but I get what you say

The ruins are a classic setting for the base and adds a nice scale look to emphasis the weight of the Titan. Great use of a garden weed, and agreed that If you need inspiration, Winterdyne is the one to follow

**Firefash**

Of cause you're assuming the tank was pristine when it got trod on. Whatever wrecked it could well have seriously compromised the internal structure, also it doesn't need to be flat as a pancake, buckled and battered would be cool.

**Theophony**

he said naked

now I said naked

oh I did it again

Will have to check out that spray for the next time I use foam, thanks for the heads up.

**hk1x1**

That base is coming along nicely, good choice going for a ruined building theme.
I have a few ideas which may help (or not), depending on how far you've got with this.

Last time I used those plastic ruins, a ran sandpaper of varying grains over the surface to help break up the smoothness of the plastic,
and give it a more battered, weathered concrete look to it.
The same thing can be done with sprue pieces, to take away those clean edges.

When it comes to making and placing rubble I found that crushed and broken up pieces of plaster work best,
and it also closely resembles concrete and brick.

As for placing it, I always found gravity very useful, so I'd just scatter it randomly around the base of any ruin structures,
starting with large pieces of ruble first, then smaller and fine pieces after.

**The_Blackadder**

hk1x1 wrote:
That base is coming along nicely, good choice going for a ruined building theme.
I have a few ideas which may help (or not), depending on how far you've got with this.

Last time I used those plastic ruins, a ran sandpaper of varying grains over the surface to help break up the smoothness of the plastic,
and give it a more battered, weathered concrete look to it.
The same thing can be done with sprue pieces, to take away those clean edges.

When it comes to making and placing rubble I found that crushed and broken up pieces of plaster work best,
and it also closely resembles concrete and brick.

As for placing it, I always found gravity very useful, so I'd just scatter it randomly around the base of any ruin structures,
starting with large pieces of ruble first, then smaller and fine pieces after.

I am humbled by the above statements.

I have always subscribed to the maxim that, "Every man is my superior in that I may learn from him." but never more so than by that which I encounter on these fori. Outstanding and so simple it confounds me I never thought of it; Sir, I am in your debt.

TYVM

**jabbakahut**

I'm always torn on the idea of basing large models. I think they tend to look better, but they also can make playing awkward (not that I play, but in theory) with a base that doesn't match the table. But when you put a model on a display shelf, the base begins to shine. I think I will do some sort of base on my Reaver.

I don't know if you've seen any of my terrain ruins, but I love doing distressed scenery (really any scenery), and I have a lot of examples and ideas in my gallery.

I like the uses of cork board, I've been wanting to use that in my models but never got around to picking any up. Another thing that I feel would work well is the ceiling tiles from an office building (easy to get free if you find a demolition).

**The_Blackadder**

All my models stand alone without bases but the poses have to be pretty basic. I prefer dynamic poses when the models are just on display which is why I built them; I don't play the game.

I'm going to experiment with gypsum board (Wall board) when I take up the bases again (That BTW was the suggestion of a reader on another forum.)

Ceiling board is fibrous, I can't conceive a use for it that would benefit.

Now asbestos, how cool would that be? Ha!

**jabbakahut**

Wall board seems useless to me. Fragile and heavy, what's the benefit? I like MDF since you can carve into it and it is available in different densities. But I think the most solid would be 1/2" Ply.

The ceiling boards come in some interesting textures, I would first carve what I am adding into them, then seal them with some sort of primer. For large boards you have instant terrain on which to build.

**The_Blackadder**

Ruglud wrote:
How's about Lucie stomping and crushing an enemy tank / flyer?

Spoiler:

Running through my old Warhound responses in prep for continuing the base construction I found this reply from 'Ruglud'. At the time this post ws made I hadn't had experience with "Spoilers" and so missed the images; they're great visuals and the Chaos Warhound is superbly mounted and posed.

Thanks for sharing.

Why 'Spoilers'?????????? What is the purpose?

**jabbakahut**

The_Blackadder wrote:
Why 'Spoilers'?????????? What is the purpose?

I think in this case it's a throwback to old school internet, where you didn't want to eat up peoples bandwidth. You can use the "spoiler" option to make it so each page view can choose whether or not they want to load the image resource. Maybe I'm reading too much into it,

**nicholas510**

That Warlord Titan- I also used this image to get some components of my Warlord right, too. But my original inspiration was from Blackadder- so keep the dream alive!
To me, the Titan he saw was probably commissioned for several hundred dollars-I feel the scratch built titans that people put a lot of time and effort into creating are far more valuable (if not affordable) than those that people have commissioned- It takes a lot of the fun out of the craft and creativity of the game- so go forth, take a look at the professionally commissioned titans- and then Build your own! I'll post my warlord pic Saturday

Automatically Appended Next Post:
I guess I saw the earlier post from another point in history- sorry for the randomness of this post above...

**keithktam**

Hi, i am Keith, new here

May i ask what did you use for the "ball" joint?
Thank you.

**The_Blackadder**

Hi Keith, welcome aboard; I thrive on construction questions and wish I got more of them.

On the middle of the third page of this manual/construction diary I show the gimbals of the ankles and neck repeated here below. These wood spheres I purchase at craft stores i.e. 'AC Moore' and 'Michael's'. I search the selection for the roundest as they have to fit the socket tightly in all positions. Let me know if you need to know how to cast the sockets................ and thanks for the response.

The_Blackadder wrote:
A rather disheartened Blackadder here after finding that prodigious Warlord Titan posted. I mean a Warhound project just doesn't seem all that big a deal anymore.

But I'm still plugging away because I still like the look of a Lucius Wolf class hound.

Today I've finally gotten the cockpit window frames and windshield frame installed. I'll install the windows after it's painted. I also have the head swivel mechanism nailed down and I'm fairly sure my head to body proportions are pretty close to correct.

I disassembled the neck to show how I made the swivel. It just plugs into the hull orifice and I probably won't glue it as the fit is quite tight.

I used a discarded paint roller tube for the sleeve and ground down a pvc pipe fitting for the gimbal housing. A 1.250 inch dia. wooden drawer knob is the orbit sphere and the front and back race is 1.0 pvc pipe beveled down for the ball to seat against.

A lot of trouble I know but it bothers me that the FW model can't be posed for different battle situations. Just about everything on my model can be moved and I managed to keep to the scale.

So here are today's images, I hope you enjoy seeing them as much as I do posting them.

E. Blackadder

**keithktam**

The_Blackadder wrote:
Hi Keith, welcome aboard; I thrive on construction questions and wish I got more of them.

On the middle of the third page of this manual/construction diary I show the gimbals of the ankles and neck repeated here below. These wood spheres I purchase at craft stores i.e. 'AC Moore' and 'Michael's'. I search the selection for the roundest as they have to fit the socket tightly in all positions. Let me know if you need to know how to cast the sockets................ and thanks for the response.

thanks Blackadder!!!

**The_Blackadder**

And with that the rest is silence so here it is one year later and I've taken up the cudgel once again:

When last we visited I was building a base for Lucie so as to display her on a shelf without toppling. But wire coat hangers are too flexible for a model of her weight so searched for a more durable rod of similar diameter. I have just found such a rod in of all places an electioneering poster support frame. These frames must withstand high winds at times so the rod is super stiff for it's diameter.

http://i.imgur.com/4wj9vZQ.jpg

So Lucie now stands somewhat erect on a custom base that still requires further painting.

http://i.imgur.com/S8ETKGh.jpg

Soon to be displayed in my curio cabinet.

http://i.imgur.com/afIAdIU.jpg

**Cosmic**

Simply fantastic, what an epic journey this has been!

Good God, I just read a comment of mine from six years ago...

It's incredible that you've committed to seeing Lucie finished for these past almost eight years now. Keep up the good work!

**keithktam**

Pardon me if I ask this question before, been a while since lat time i was here. do you use any CAD program to help draw the template?? cause your design is quite intricate, I keep thinking how could I start drawing the template if I was to build something similar.
Thanks

Keith

**The_Blackadder**

keithktam wrote:
Pardon me if I ask this question before, been a while since lat time i was here. do you use any CAD program to help draw the template?? cause your design is quite intricate, I keep thinking how could I start drawing the template if I was to build something similar.
Thanks
Keith

Thanks for the reply, sorry to say I very rarely use any sort of drawing or template to make my models. I only work first hand with the material and what looks right to me. Mainly I work with trail and error until the component looks right, witness the forehead of my Warlord Titan where I continually shaved and sanded until it looked right to me. My Thunderhawk was about as close as I have ever come to using a pattern which someone else had done the CAD drawing. Since it looked perfect to me I just copied the image by eye. I've been able to do this from childhood and have had no formal training in art so while perhaps a talent it is just luck on my part to have this particular gift. How it works or how I am able to do this, I'm sorry to say, I have no idea????

**Ruglud**

The_Blackadder wrote:

Why 'Spoilers'?????????? What is the purpose?

Late reply I know... but... my reasons for using the spoiler tag is that this isn't my thread so I didn't want to be rude and post another users work and have folk think it's mine or yours... The spoiler hides the pics from a quick view and then you only need to view it if you're interested... Another reason for using spoilers in these days of broadband and high speed internet is that I find the spoilers speed up viewing via smart phones...

**keithktam**

The_Blackadder wrote:
keithktam wrote:
Pardon me if I ask this question before, been a while since lat time i was here. do you use any CAD program to help draw the template?? cause your design is quite intricate, I keep thinking how could I start drawing the template if I was to build something similar.
Thanks
Keith

Thanks for the reply, sorry to say I very rarely use any sort of drawing or template to make my models. I only work first hand with the material and what looks right to me. Mainly I work with trail and error until the component looks right, witness the forehead of my Warlord Titan where I continually shaved and sanded until it looked right to me. My Thunderhawk was about as close as I have ever come to using a pattern which someone else had done the CAD drawing. Since it looked perfect to me I just copied the image by eye. I've been able to do this from childhood and have had no formal training in art so while perhaps a talent it is just luck on my part to have this particular gift. How it works or how I am able to do this, I'm sorry to say, I have no idea????

Thank you Blackadder. Good to know how the master work