So much win. I especially like the Ork bailing out of the tower.

Hi all,

Sorry for the lack of posts.
Unfortunately work keeps me very busy, and despite the weather being exceptionally good for March here in Germany I had no chance of priming the Pollux and Castor diorama - lack of daylight.
But I didn't want to idle and lose my hobby drive and while lurking on the various forums I decided to participate in the SMA Spring Contest ( http://www.scalemodeladdict.com/SMF/index.php/topic,10830.0.html ).
It is a "fight for honor" contest (so no prices) and the topic is "Prototypes". One can participate in various categories and the competition is very challenging.
My idea is to create a scene with a very distinct Third Reich/Iron Sky flair and a sprinkle of WH40K. I envision an underground research facility, looking a bit like an old U-Boot bunker, a "prototype" in the center, with soldiers and researchers around it, while a group of officers take the "dog-and-pony-show"

In this early sketch you can see that I intended to use a bare-skeleton Pollux walker (without the weapons and armor) with an open cockpit, so one can see the "wired-in" pilot, and a whole bunch of people around it.


In addition to my usual WH40K soldiers I decided to use some 1:48 Tamiya WWII German soldiers for this scene. They are a mis-purchase, as they usually don't fit the WH40K figures.
But for this I can mix the two, as the prototype is either built on a special planet, where the inhabitants are slimmer, or if on Dencara, these guys are from a different race with a different build, while the "real soldiers" are of the sturdy, bulky type.
Fluff for the win



But the more I thought about it the less I liked the idea to use another Pollux-pattern walker. And looking through my closet (I'm a real "messy" when it comes to hobby parts) I came across these Sherman and Lee boxes I purchased on e-Bay - solely for the purpose of salvaging the road wheels.


So why not build a prototype based on a Sherman?
This way I have the option to enter in the armor, Sci-fy, and diorama categories (if I can afford it that is).


Decision made, I opted for this Sherman hull.


I quickly shaved off the deck, to make room for some modifications.


Since the prototype will be mostly without hatches (open) I also added some side walls to the lower hull.


Then I cut out the new openings for the turret and the crew hatches.
The rear central hatch is for the commander, left for the loader, right for the gunner.


Then I worked on the gun.
Since it's still a prototype, most of the armor and covers are missing and many pieces be visible.


So I added a movable breech - the breech opens downwards, so there will be a auto loader from inside the vehicle.



This is how the gun looks in comparison to the hull.


Next I worked on the actual gun mount


and it's position on the vehicle.


To compensate for the recoil I added a set of rails on which the gun mount can move - I'm not sure if I'll add visible dampeners....


I'm still undecided if I mount the rails forward like this


or rather rearwards (gun mount aligns with the front of the turret base, or the rails align with the rear)


The whole gun mount on the vehicle.
As you can see I aim for a low silhouette and great depression (so the gun can fire from the backside of a hill).


I also added some modifications to the rear - with a section of the engine being visible.


Most likely I will also keep the actual engine deck open, so a section of the engine may be visible.
But I'll decide on this later, so no details added yet.


Finally I added most of the running gear last night.
This will be pretty much out of the box.


I also added a WH40K Imperial Guard driver (sans the head so far).


And this is how the vehicle looks so far.


What do you think?
I have no name for this baby yet, but I think I will break with the Greek Deity tradition and use a more mundane naming approach.
Any suggestions?
I hope you like today's update and I look forward to your comments and feedback.
Cheers

Klaus

Great work as always mate!! Really cool!

And certainly a good way to brighten up a Monday at work.... all iwant to do it build when is ee any of your posts!

 MagosBiff90 wrote:
Great work as always mate!! Really cool!

And certainly a good way to brighten up a Monday at work.... all iwant to do it build when is ee any of your posts!

Thanks Mate!

I am staggered by the breech. That's extraordinary. You're truly epic.

Amazing as always, You knock out detailed work so quickly, great stuff. Are the hulls 1:48?

Looks a bit like a sniper tank, so maybe mess around with that for a name. That long gun, screams tank killer.

Great work and looks like it should.

It's a joy peering into your mind when you work Klaus!

Thank you guys!


very little progress as time is still fleeting, but an update nevertheless.
I added some recoil dampeners and a breech mechanism to the gun.


And I built a "sight" for the gunner. Since it is a prototype still in research and testing, the sight box is open, as a technician can access it.


Next I looked into a more independent sight for the commander, using the design I used on the POLEMOS Urban Attack Vehicle.



Here you can see the mounted gunner sight.



But what about the commander sight?


Is that looking OK? Or should I find a better position?

Any ideas?

Since I want to add an auto-loader mechanism that may be visible I created some ammunition.


For this I put a section of plastic card rod into my drill


And then run it first across a rasp


and then over some sandpaper.


And with a little practice I get these nice shells


With the idea to cast some more....




After the first test cast for the ammo was successful I added some "Dencara-style" lights to the former Sherman,


added some details to the engine and added first rivets.


And this is how the little low profile tank hunter looks as of today.


So what do you think, anything major still missing?
What about the commander sight?
I look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

love it so far man. does anyone else sell shells like those because you could sell them if not.

Wow, I love how you mae those shells.... for one horrifying moment I thought you were going to put that rod into a pencil sharpener and then use the drill as a primitive lathe.... glad to see you went for the more sane option.... I really like your WIP's and showing how you put these moels together, the thought process' etc.
Stering work!!

Fantastic work (that makes me feel bad about my own) as always.

And loving those shells, will have to remember that.

As for the commanders sight - it doesn't want to be on top.
It looks out of place and makes the profile too tall.

I would say place it either on the disc to the left of the cannons barrel, or create a recess in the sloped armour at the front of the vehicle for it.

This is really cool!


Automatically Appended Next Post:
What did you use for molding material and casting resin?

Amazing attention to detail and realism as usual, I don't like the commander sight up there either IMHO. Maybe over the opposite hole from where the driver is, unless that would get in the way of the barrel's traverse..

Hi all,
thanks for your feedback. Seems my little trick for the shells is considered valuable
@ Atreides127 - it's a 1/35 Sherman (Tamiya 35190 M4 Sherman 1 : 35), they are a tad too big for standard WH40K, but the 1:48 kits are definitely too small.

@Warboss_Waaazag - it's pretty cool stuff, actually no-name, I order here in Germany at Rai-Ro. Here's a link on my blog:
http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/p/simple-molding.html

Since the last update I worked on the auto-loading mechanism. It makes no sense to have such a low profile gun arrangement, if you can't get any shells in, right?
So here is the lifting mechanism, that will push the shell up into the breech.


With a shell in the lower position,


and a bit up - since it's not glued in position it kept sliding down while shooting the photo


Since I don't want a loader to slam a round into the lift as each round is fired (which would also require the turret to come back to the 12 o'clock position for each reload) I designed a small 4-shot magazine.


There should be two magazines - one on each side - to allow for two standard ammunition's.



And here you can see the "Kampfmittelanlage SKORPION"


Or rather the "Versuchswaffenträger XI mit Kampfmittelanlage SKORPION und Kampfraumverbesserung ODIN"


Sounds "official" enough, doesn't it?


Next I assembled all the little tools and gadgets that were included in the Tamiya "WWII German Tank Crew Field Maintenance Set" 1:48.
Lots of ammo crates, a table, a ladder, some tool boxes, and some tools.


And then I started to assemble them into the scene.


Remember, that I'm trying to get a " Third Reich/Iron Sky flair and a sprinkle of WH40K. I envision an underground research facility, looking a bit like an old U-Boot bunker, a "prototype" in the center, with soldiers and researchers around it, while a group of officers take the "dog-and-pony-show". "

The tank will be on an elevated part of the facility - most likely with some tracks running on the ground and lots of concrete.


The right end of the scene will be closed by a huge blast door, sealing the facility from the environment (but a little man-door on the side).


And to give it some feeling of thickness I added some support beams.


Maybe I'll add a running crane to these support beams.


Since the Styrofoam doesn't really represent concrete any good, I casted some plates to simulate pre-casted concrete sections.


I like the concrete effect.


So, this is as far as I got.


What do you think?
I look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

As always looks amazing.

I am not sure I should dare to make suggestions since you are one of the Jedi Council, but....

I would stick the whole tank on a rail carriage running on the tracks. Gives that production line feel. Just a simple set of wheels and a flat bed top. Just a thought.

Brilliant work though, and nice scene, perfect for what you are trying to go for I think.

It all looks good so far, and I love the work you've done on that gun,
the fact that you can see the mechanics behind how it works really adds to the realism .

Oooh this is some amazing stuff Klaus! I know I always say that..but it's always true!

The pre-cast concrete plates are brilliant! I've often pondered how to get that "poured in sections- and therefore weathered different" look. My spidey senses tell me you're going to achieve that look here!

Beautiful work, my friend.

Quality Klaus..... real Quility!! and the details on that gun assembly is sweet! As always...... really love your work!!

Thank you guys!
You help me a lot.

Sorry for the longer silence, but the last two weeks were rather eventful.
I have some problems sleeping, actually haven't slept without pills for weeks, and the pills make me very drowsy. Plus lots of migraine - and the pills give me pimples
So I've been to MRT, but everything OK there, so it is "only" psycho-somatic...or as the doc said "on the fast lane to burnout"
So he considered me unfit for work, and I'm on medical leave for at least two weeks.

I can already feel some improvement, and yesterday was my 49th (!!! I'm OLD) birthday. I celebrated with my wife and I was able to enjoy the food and drink
Since I will also have a two week vacation lined up directly after Eastern, I will be off work for 4 weeks total. Right now it feels like this will do the trick and get me back into working order

Well, with that much time on my hands I DID get some stuff done. Not as much as I would normally have, but I'm quite pleased.

I wasn't quite satisfied with the concrete I created, so I created a new set of concrete.


The structure is a lot better, and also the "boarded" style looks more realistic.


So I created new molds and poured new sets of concrete sections.


Looks better I think


I also built a rolling door for the wall in the rear.


Plus a running crane.


Then I built the large blast door for the right wall.


The scene is slowly coming together.


The running gear for the crane



Then I added signal lights for the blast door,


and side door,


as well as a fluorescent light for one of the work areas.


Then I built several detail items like this large console.


All the little gadgets in position


One final item I wanted to add were lights


So I created rear wall mountings, using the corners of old sprues.


and simple plastic card lamps


I think it fits the atmosphere...


Then I added the turret to the crane



And the final scene


I'm very pleased with it.
The scene looks pretty much how I wanted it.
Now the actual figures need some attention, lots of mold line cleaning, some sculpting and details.
So, what do you think?
I look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

All I can say is you sir make me sick that's a lot of detail there. The only thing I can see you doing to make it even better (and I'm sure you could but it would be a pain) is to make the lights operational.

Aside from that it looks great. Keep it up.

Magnificent work as always. Colour Me military green with envy! Sorry to hear you've been unwell, hopefully time off will help mend. A daft question: is this supposed to be an imperial installation? If so, a big ad mech cog needed!

Phenomenal work as always Klaus!! And what a return........ the details as always are amazing.....

Great work as always , needs more orks attacking it though. I really love the winch at the top and all the details you built into the rails it rides in.

Wow! Klaus! This has to be your best yet! The rolling door, the crane, the lights, all details that really keep the viewer amazed and interested in looking!

Amazing!

What do you do with all of these? Are they just boxed up in your basement (I'm imagining the end of the first Indiana Jones movie) or have you taken over your FLGS? They're really astounding and should be displayed with pride!

Now I see why you need a vacation. "Oh, I'll just make a fully-detailed tank factory in a couple of days..."

Great work as always, Klaus. Be sure and fully enjoy that month off. Don't work, don't do modelling stuff. Get outside, do stuff with friends and family.

We'll be here when you get back.

There isn't a button on my keyboard to type the extreme rage I am feeling at how easy you make this look! Two much awesome in one update I think, my updates tend to be "painted a marine's helmet today" and yours are "scratch-built a tank factory complete with tank, crew and details today". Its just too much!

Awesome work though mate, very excited to see what paint turns this diorama into.

Also, happy belated birthday!

Your work never ceases to amaze me.

Astonishing, you still raise the bar further each time. Amazing details and looks perfect. will look amazing with paint.

Get well soon, and a belated Happy Birthday.

You are "why" I am doing what I am doing! Thank you.

 Camkierhi wrote:
You are "why" I am doing what I am doing! Thank you.

Second to that! a LOT of inspirtion to do this comes from these pages here......

Looking Brilliant as ever Klaus!

Pretty staggering basically, loved the concrete casting, seriously get some rest! Hope you feel better soon.

A stunning piece of work, I love every detail.
You can instantly see from just looking at the scene that this isn't just a standard tank assembly line,
but construction of a new prototype, very well done .

mars2024 wrote:Amazing!

What do you do with all of these? Are they just boxed up in your basement (I'm imagining the end of the first Indiana Jones movie) or have you taken over your FLGS? They're really astounding and should be displayed with pride!

Well, just for my own pleasure. I have no FLGS other than two GW shops, and they don't want my stuff, as it isn't pure enough
They sit here in my den, in the display cabinets, and most of the time I don't even look at them....
But there are times, when I sit here, look across my desk into the cabinet and start grinning

inmygravenimage wrote:Magnificent work as always. Colour Me military green with envy! Sorry to hear you've been unwell, hopefully time off will help mend. A daft question: is this supposed to be an imperial installation? If so, a big ad mech cog needed!

Actually it's neither nor. Not really WH40K. I'm building this for the SMA Spring Contest and wanted to try some of the WWII stuff I had around. It's a hotch-potch, Misch-Masch of everything. Artistic freedom so to speak

hk1x1 wrote:A stunning piece of work, I love every detail.
You can instantly see from just looking at the scene that this isn't just a standard tank assembly line,
but construction of a new prototype, very well done .

Thanks Just what I had intended

Again, thank you for your kind words and support.
I feel like I'm making some progress, but experienced some set-backs too.
Last week a good and dear friend, Christian Koppmeyer, died at 52 (https://www.facebook.com/groups/advancedsquadleader/10153999329070029/?notif_t=like) .
So quite some up and down.


But I started painting the diorama.
First evening the concrete received a blue-grey base color.


And I added some yellow warning lines.


The next evening I was able to add details to the warning lights and the small num-pad on the side of the man-door.


In my vision of this scene I always envisioned a large Imperial logo on the wall.
So I started to paint this on the rear wall.


And the name of the facility.


But together with the sliding door....

not so good :(

So the next evening I gave it another try and ended up with this.

I like this much better.
So I added another warning slogan (Caution. Gate opens and closes automatically) to the front wall.


Another evenings work was the painting of the sliding door.
Weathered and with some German labeling. (The pencil lines are no longer visible )

It reads:
"Versuchsanlage Rheingold" -Test facility Rhinegold
and
"Sonder-Forschungsabteilung von Sonnenberg" - Special research facility "von Sonnenberg"


Next was the gate.
Again weathered and with labels.


And mounted into the diorama.


The running track and the power cable for the crane got its base color.



And finally I started to paint the first items.


Well, this is as far as I got.
I hope you like it.
I look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

God that is a sweet looking start.

Very nice work.

I love your factory, I think it will be my favourite of your dioramas. I hope you feel better soon!

Sehr gut gemacht! That's about all the German I know. Any chance of you telling us the dimensions of the structure?

Have you thought about wiring up those light fixtures with LEDs?

Looking excellent.
Walls look fantastic, the work on the doors is brilliant. At the moment the Crane and frame are stealing the show, just brilliant.

Knockout Klaus... absolute Knockout!
Really getting a 3rd Reich feel from this........ In a good way!!

Whats the plans for the Tank / Gun itself....... just to throw my pennie's worth into the ring...... (sorry if someone has mentioned this before) ........ I think if it is the gun that is the prototyp system.... then it would be a fairly ordinary "off the shelf" tank hull it would be attached to.... so maybe a plain ordinary paint scheme for the hull and then a freshly painted look for the new gun system itself..... Maybe something to think about...... IMHO would give a nice contrast and then really make the new turret stand out!

Something like this... ps.... i got this from Armorama.com...... so all dues to the painter!! IMHO its pretty cool!


But anyway.... as always i am sure what you have planned will knock our socks off.....

Wow. I surfed backwards through the posts I hadn't seen and saw the construction coming along beautifully. Now more recently your painting looks amazing! This is really coming along! I'm transfixed. Looks great!

Loving the step by step with colors etc! Thanks for that!

Hi all,
updates are a bit slow, as there's a lot of small details to paint. So forgive me the posting frequency.

Since the last update I painted the welding equipment with the gas bottles and a small tool table.


Then a kind of gun shield with a toolbox in front.
This will also be the main paint scheme for the prototype. (MagosBiff09 - great minds think alike )


And then I did the blueprint on the construction desk
I admit I'm proud of it.


Looks pretty cool in the scene.


Next was the main console - in a wooden finish.


And the second console in the upper left corner.


And then it was the first piece of the tank.
The turret attached to the running crane.


Here you can see the turret itself is already a bit beaten up and scratched, but the gun tube seems to be a new one. No scratches.
It is labeled "Nr. 5 long" and "120mm StuK 55 l/5"


The chassis got the base coat in the rust protection paint.


Engine and interior got their paint too.


And the sign that identifies the project:
"Versuchswaffenträger XII mit Kampfmittelanlage "Skorpion" & Kampfraumverbesserung "Odin".
And the vehicle's nickname "Siglinde".


Scratches and a bit of wear.




And incorporated into the scene.


The driver is observing closely as the turret is matched to the "Siglinde" vehicle


Next are the troopers and then some pigments.
After that the real fun starts, when I add the washes and then start painting the highlights and light effects.
I hope you like today's update.
Cheers
Klaus

There is so much beautiful work here I suffer from paralysis of choice! But I have to mention the AMAZING shadows - it's the icing on an already very tasty cake! Sehr gud!

Amazing Klaus. Love the blueprint and all the tiny, beautiful writing.

Klaus, Klaus, Klaus.....you have to stop doing this. I ran out of words to express my delight with your work so long ago........

Blueprint, toolbox and table are my favourite touches so far.

You show us again just what it takes to be a master. amazing.

 Camkierhi wrote:
You show us again just what it takes to be a master. amazing.

Too much time you mean?


Thanks Mates!

Love it Klaus... simply love it!

Beautiful Klaus! Especially the blueprint...but shouldn't there be a guy standing on the hull guiding it in with his hands?

I have always loved your dioramas as they are some of the craziest conversions I know of. And after a long absence when a friend showed me "this cool conversion" that I instantly recognized as yours, I had to come back. I'm not disapointed. this new one is fantastic! The detail is impeccable!

The concrete on the walls is really convincing in those photos. And that is a massive drafting table.

This is really coming together now you've got it painted.
And your right, you should be proud of that blueprint table, it looks fantastic .

Hi guys,
today I have a short product review for you.

I participated in Mad Robot's "Roll Call" for the Danamian Jungle Fighters in March. This was like a Kickstarter for the creation of a new bits set - well actually a whole squad with several options for heads, torsos, backpacks, weapons etc.

The Danamians are based on
Lt. Walke's Vietnam style WH40K Imperial Guard - the Da'Namians.
http://z11.invisionfree.com/Work_In_Progress/index.php?showtopic=623&hl=

As part of the Roll Call I was one of the early recipient's
And yesterday my package arrived.
Upon unwrapping the first surprise!
The come in a nice sturdy box (like the old VHS video cassette cases)


A squad consists of 10ea:
- heads
- torsos
- sets of arms
- sets of legs
- rifles
- backpacks
Plus 1 set of officer arms (one with a knife/machete and one with a Las-Pistol)
In addition I got the extra unlocked items from the Roll Call:
A special weapons set (M60 machine gun style) and a Grenade launcher


I opted for "Flak Vest" torsos. 3 are closed and 2 are open.


For the heads I opted for the Veterans heads - as usually excellently sculpted and very characterful


For the arms I had the choice of bare arms or rolled sleeve.
I went for the rolled sleeve style.



The Rifles I selected are the MR-16 rifles
I the background you can see the Grenade launcher and some of the accessories.


Backpacks were available in 2 or 3 different sizes and I opted for the medium backpacks.


These are the officer arms.


The legs - option "fatigue-style" - offer 5 nice poses.


And last not least, the unlocked MR-60 set


Sooooo nice!
Here you can see some additional photos at "Work in Progress":
http://z11.invisionfree.com/Work_In_Progress/index.php?showtopic=18288&st=175

I am VERY pleased with this new squad and all the options it allows me for my future builds.
Check it out and take a look at the "Custom Squad Builder" that allows you to combine all the available options into your very personal squad:
http://madrobotminiatures.com/zencart/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=9_19&products_id=47

Cheers
Klaus

Very cool, and much better proportions than Catachans. How much did they set you back?

Hi guys,

I started painting the soldiers in their base colors.


I'm trying to emphasize the different races (40K vs WWII Germans) by giving the "soldiers" a darker skin color while the "researchers and mechanics" get a very pale skin tone.



Then the "Siglinde" got another weathering treatment and some pigments.


and the hangar received the first washes.



The individuals also received first shadows and highlights



And the Admiral and entourage before OSL effects.


The next steps are to complete the washes for all items and then start the OSL effects from all the lights.

I hope you like today's update and look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

Hey mate!

Let ms be the first to say.... WWWWOOOOWWWW!!!!

really great stuff mate! Really captured a lot of movement and hustle and bustle in your dio's.... love it as always!

Truly awesome as always, love the officers, very nice work.

Uff! Done
It was a bit of a marathon last night, but I was able to complete "The Prototype".

Here you can see where I started yesterday evening.


I then added more grime and more shadows.


After the shadows I began painting and spraying the light effects.
First only on the walls


Then also on the Siglinde and the other pieces.


After the white lights I added yellow to warmen the light and to simulate the light bulb effect.


The little neon light in the back and on the desk remain white


And the welders got a blue-ish light.


Done!


In the light box.


And the final images.











I hope you like it
It's been fun - quite a different thing than my usual settings.
I look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

Awesome Klaus.
So pretty.

Stunning work as usual Klaus

As for C&C...

Comments: Wow!

Criticisms: Let me get back to you once I've been over the images for a few hours to see if I can come up with anything

Someday I will find my way to your North Pole base and torture your secrets out of those elves........

That is amazing!

As usual there is a little stroy to the diorama:

Dencaran Fleet Admiral Koppmeyer and Marshal Grossholderman of the Dencaran MCMXIX Atmospheric Strike Fleet visit the “Rheingold” research facility on Tedescium (Dencara 3). Here they inspect the Special Research Department “von Sonnenberg” where they are introduced to one of the latest armor projects for the Naval Landing Forces. They are accompanied by the Admiral’s personal pilot Wing Commander Koch.
The project on display is the research weapons carrier XII with the new weapon plant “Scorpion” and the crew compartment improvement “Odin” (Versuchswaffenträger XII mit Kampfmittelanlage “Skorpion” & Kampfraumverbesserung “Odin”).
At this moment the weapon plant is re-mounted to the vehicle after it has been equipped with the new 120mm StuK 55L/5 Smoothbore gun and readied for trials.

Truly stunning, Klaus...

If you (really) want some criticism, then the only think I can see it that the writings would have looked better if it had been "stencilled"... But that's a minor thing, you are far, far better than me on that point !

Your work never disappoints, amazing as always .

Thank you all!
@Yggdrasil - yes I initially planned to use stenciled writing, but when looking at some original images, I realized that many tanks in the factories had handwritings on them. I even downloaded the so-called "Sütterlin" font, which is the typical German handwriting of the 1930's - 40's.

Well, now that "The Prototype" is completed - http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/p/the-prototype.html
- and being voted on at CMoN - http://www.coolminiornot.com/357425 - I was looking for the next project.
I should continue with POLLUX and CASTOR - http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2014/03/pollux-and-castor-9.html - as this was the last project before "The Prototype", but sparked by a comment from Colonel Jacka

Mind you Klaus has done some beauties I particularly liked the Patrol Boat diorama.

my interest in the Raid on Port Corinth diorama - http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2013/05/raid-on-port-corinth-4.html - was rekindled.

Upon looking at what I have so far, I realized that the diorama has not the best of all compositions. The THALASSA patrol boat is actually blocking most of the action happening on land.


So I decided to separate the two.
Make a diorama with just the THALASSA - in action, on a lava lake, and maybe firing off a torpedo (or surface skimming missile), with the crew doing some action on deck.


Looking at the harbor scene I was thinking about adding a surfaced submarine, from which the troopers landed and conducted their raid.
The submarine would be low enough not to block the actual action.


But a submarine couldn't realistically come that close while under water (well, under lava). So I browsed through my idea backlog and ran into some sketches and images of an amphibious landing.
Wow!
Why not add a Amtrac/AAV-7 style vehicle, from which the trooper landed?
Cool idea

And as I started to design such an Amphibious Attack Vehicle I looked at the PONOS - http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2012/09/orkalypse-now-hq-images.html -
And a big fat grin spread on my face
How about a PONOS that delivers the troopers?

Well, not like this, but half submerged?


With this I pulled my old notes, sketches and plans and found a set of plans for a slightly smaller PONOS version.
With this plan I could even fit two submerged PONOS' on the scene - one an Engineer Support Vehicle maybe?


With the plans I was able to quickly cut the basic pieces and put them together.


I even got the basic roof with hatches done


And here is a scale shot in comparison to the original PONOS - about 5cm shorter and 2-3 cm narrower.


So, what do you think?
I look forward to your suggestions and comments.
Cheers
Klaus

Klaus... your ingeniousness knows no bounds! That is a great idea! I remember looking back through your blog a while back and seeing this patrol boat.... VERY cool in its own right... but yeh i think there is certainly scope for a more dynamic scene using the harbour section.....

As always i look on with anticipation!!

Klaus, how about having the boats bow-first to the harbour? Then they won't block as much of the harbour from view and don't have to look like they are sinking.

I'm sure you'll make it look great whatever you do, but just a thought.

Watching master......

Must watch... must learn... must....scrap build....


I have a question though. Did you finish the Castor and Pollux one?

Dr H wrote:Klaus, how about having the boats bow-first to the harbour? Then they won't block as much of the harbour from view and don't have to look like they are sinking.

I'm sure you'll make it look great whatever you do, but just a thought.

Thanks Dr. H
These won't be boats, but amphibious tanks. One will be right at the steps, and maybe there will be even one trooper jumping from the vehicle to the harbour steps - I'll have to see what I can come up with
The other will be a bit turned away, (having already unloaded the troopers) and provide covering fire.

xXWeaponPrimeXx wrote:Must watch... must learn... must....scrap build....


I have a question though. Did you finish the Castor and Pollux one?

Hehe
From a pure build persepective POLLUX and CASTOR are completed, I "just" have to prime and paint them


Thanks guys!

Ok, got it for the handwriting ! It was only a minor comment though, so no big deal

One of the thing, I think, that allows you to be so succesful in modelling is that you aren't afraid of scrapping your work to start anew. I bet most of us, when confronted with your problem of overwhelming lava boat, would've just called it a day, and finished it like it was.

But having the courage to blow it off and build other things is remarkable !

Hi all,
so my first task was to find the proper position and "stance" of the amphibious vehicles.
The first PONOS is to be close to the steps and maybe even a bit of "bobbing on the waves".


With the sides properly built up to simulate the bobbing, I had to apply some putty (not the last time you'll read this today) to cover some of my errors.


But after sanding the hull looks rather nice.


In addition I added some structure to the lava around the two PONOS'


For the second PONOS I decided to create a "support version" with a obstacle breaching gun - or or short, stubby howitzer. For this I covered a part of the passenger hatches to provide a base for the turret.


The first PONOS received an open weapons station, with a twin Bolter, some armor and a mounted rocket launcher.

The launcher is in a stand-by position that hopefully makes sense.....

For the howitzer turret I started with the turret base and a smaller roof shape.


To build the turret up I glued some 1cm high spacers onto the base,


and then mounted the roof.


With the roof in position I could then add the sides.


Needs putty though


But I think it is a nice shape, isn' it?


On the PONOS


The first raw gun...


and the final, more detailed gun.


Including some more turret details such as sights and sensors.


Both PONOS' on the base.


To bring some more action to the scene I decided to add a Medic that is jumping from the left PONOS to the steps, to attend the wounded trooper I already have.
For this I used the new Mad Robot flak vest torso and fatigue legs, plus standard IG arms.

He will carry a medic bag, and maybe some more accessories.

Finally I added some storage containers to the vehicles.


Now I will have to add a lot of details, like view-ports, hatches, lights, sensors, and RIVETS!
I hope you like today's update and look forward to your feedback.
Cheers
Klaus

Awesome as usual.

Obviously, you are going to add loads of detail. May I suggest a slightly special spot light on one of the vehicles, pointing at the shore for the medic.

Oh and exhausts! I know you did not forget, sorry.

Remarkable stuff, and an improvement on the diorama's composition too. Just a question though, why make the turret so narrow? It's a bit Leman Russ-esque for a transport. IMHO, of course.

Hi all,
thank you for the feedback and recommendations.
@Red Harvest - thank you To be honest I'm not really sure why. It just felt better to have such a small turret on an amphibious vehicle. Just intuition I guess....

First I added the exhausts.
I kept them relatively simple, as I have to adjust the lava around it too. But at least I gave them some flaps to keep water (and lava) out.


Next part of detailing were the large hatches on the side.


Mounted they look pretty neat.


The hatches for the crew compartment and lids for the storage containers were next.


I also had the idea of a soldier standing in one of the hatches and providing fire support.
For this I used the Mad Robot Flak Vest Torso, M60 gunner arms, a set of fatigue legs, and a CDF head.


For the proper leg position I had to do some cutting


And after some greenstuffing and detailing with accessories the guy looks really good.


I'm quite pleased.


That's it for today
I hope you like today's update.
Cheers
Klaus

Looking awesome Klaus! Its the characterisation that really impresses most of all about these pieces!

Nice Little detail on the exhaust heads too.......

Will there be a little draw bridge to allow the troopers on to the port across the lava?!

Started looking at your last post and ended up reading the whole 10 [filtered] pages. Went through the loss of your cat, a car crash, infected hand, whew! Absolutely superb stuff, as someone posted, you are the god of plasticard. Is the Atena finally finished?

Nice addition with the supporting dude

Humbly requesting this exact picture again when its painted! That is an epic scene.

EPIC!!

Yet again, you up the bar for us poor mortals.

 xXWeaponPrimeXx wrote:


Humbly requesting this exact picture again when its painted! That is an epic scene.

Thank you!
Yes, I will post the appropriate image once I've painted it

Malevengion wrote:

Looks good so far! It seems to me that the men would get cooked and/ or asphyxiated in the environment. I'm not sure what would be needed though. Maybe masks for the soldiers or some sort of refrigerant blaster to make the assault survivable?

You're right about the heat and air in this lava scenario. You may recall from the original build, that all the troopers have respirators (though they don't wear them, but they have them on their shoulder). In addition I'm adding some emitters for a force field that will protect the vehicle, as well as some extra exhausts for the additional ventilation and "air conditioning".
I'm pretty sure in the 40th century there will be some technology to cover that

Well, first I want to show you the contents of a care packet I received last week from Tim aka Eyescream.
A very generous gift with lots of brand new goodies!


One of the highlights is this little toilet bowl

From what Eyescream remembered, he got on a Bit Con, but it is available via Black Cat Bases http://blackcatbases.com/index.php?main_pa...=toilet&x=0&y=0


Since the last update I added the vision ports for the sides of the passenger compartment


as well as the vision ports for the crew - what used to be the windshield on the standard PONOS.


Next were the lights for the front


and rear


Giving it the typical PONOS look


Then some more details like the smoke dischargers


and the searchlights.


Finally I added some indicators/emitters for the force field -needed to get everyone safely through the lava

Not sure if I'll add an effect here or how I will show that theses are the Force Field emitters....

Then I created some ventilation outlets for the rear of the passenger compartment.



I think they look OK on the vehicles


And finally I applied all the rivets on the first PONOS - Eyescream pattern


So what do you think of today's update?
I look forward to your C&C and suggestions.
Cheers
klaus

Really cool update as always Klaus!!

Love the amount of detail on those craft.... and as always.... the quality of the work is top notch!

Love those little lava bubbles too by the way!! Lovely little details!

Fantastic as always.

Great detailing, like the vents, lights all looking good.

As to the force field, there was a guy a while ago who had eldar thingy, it had a forcefield around it, looked amazing.

Personally I would maybe get one of those desserts from the shop, they come in a round bowl. Clear plastic, you get to eat the dessert and then you could maybe have pieces of the bowl suspended out from the generators, make it look like they are taking fire. Just a small piece of the whole, looking like a forcefield under fire. Maybe the support could look like a spark?!

I want to try this one day myself, though I am nowhere near as good as you or the other guy who did it.

Hi all,
since the last update I had to complete the rivets of the 2nd PONOS.
Which in return completed the actual building phase of the diorama.


But what I definitely wanted to add was a firing effect for the PONOS' howitzer.
So I started with the base from plastic card and rod...


and then started to add Pro Create.


While this first batch of PC cured I sculpted the muzzle flash for the gunner - lets call him Rambo, shall we?


Additionally I decided to give the Medic a new head - one of the new heads thanks to Tim.


After the first batch of PC was cured I added more around the "fire ring"


as the effect I'm using as a pattern is kind of like this:


On the model it already starts to look good.


Rambo with his muzzle flash


Here you can see the underside of the fire ring for the howitzer effect.



And after another round of curing I finalized the fire effect.


I think this will look pretty cool in the scene.


And since today is all about effects, I also looked into the Force Field I want to represent.
So I looked at the stash of clear plastic material I have available...


And this is a first test.


I'm aiming at a hexagonal layout with the hex grid being clearly visible, and the "inside" of each hex being sprayed with an airbrush.
Satisfied with the initial layout I created the first force field and painted the hex-grid onto it (using Ice Blue and a second thinner line of a 50:50 mix white and Ice Blue)


And this is how it will be positioned around the PONOS.


Now imagine all the other stuff painted and the inside of the hexes "glowing" in a light blue....


I hope this will look as good as I am imagining it right now.
What do you think?
Will this work?
Cheers
Klaus

Brilliant work.

It's impossible to go wrong with hexes. But will that paint adhere properly to that plastic? I've never managed to make it stay on over any length of time.

Everything is coming together so nicely here. It truly is amazing to watch you go from concept to completion.



What is that head?

 xXWeaponPrimeXx wrote:
Everything is coming together so nicely here. It truly is amazing to watch you go from concept to completion.



What is that head?

Its from the new GW Scion sprue.

Hey guys,

Sorry for the delay in updates, but my shoulder is acting up again ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Impingement_syndrome ) and an operation seems to become more and more probable.

Nevertheless, I have a nice update for you.
As you may recall I was last working on creating a force field effect. Using clear plastic card and a hex pattern I came up with this:



Even though it's not sooooo bad looking I have to admit it's not what I envisioned.


So I decided to go without the effect - I reworked the structure of the "lava" and prepared everything for priming.


The desk reading for painting


I started with the port area, painting the stones, pipes and containers and boxes.


Without the force field I would have a lot of discussions about the vehicles swimming through lava.
So I decided to try something new.
Lets go for some green liquid - almost like chemical waste.


After the base color I added lighter shades of green


Looks like a rather "pleasant" swimming pool, doesn't it?


Satisfied with the water and the base colors for the harbour, I started to highlight the areas that will be affected by OSL - just a simple light white drybrush.


And then I started with the vehicles, using the standard Dencara Tiger Flash pattern ( http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/p/dencara-paint-schemes.html )


To harmonize the vehicles with the water, I added some "scorch marks" to the paint job.


And since the liquid may be corrosive, I added some blank metal.


Finally I added first details to the vehicles.


Still a rather long way to go.
I hope you like today's update.
Cheers
klaus

Hey Klaus, you're certainly a guy that takes us all out for a roller coaster ride...

The prototype dio has mostly slipped my attention... my own fault...but I like the theme a lot. Just the different scales in bodies slightly affects my OCD...
But now that landing scene is a very brave idea...I am actually liking the green "water" way better...as I think while lava is as ballsy as it gets the green water is way more convincing... But this theme change also raises a scheme question...why now the standard dencara pattern? Wouldnt your lil fellas repaint their tanks accordingly to the surrounding scene? Currently they are very spotty in a look who's there kind of way...

Once again..... really "pushing the boat out" with this one! Sorry.... terrible pun...

In all seriousness... i think the green chem waste's works really well.... and the blank metal / acid burn is cool! Got to admit i agree with VIK..... the paint scheme stands out as a little odd for me..... but then its not entirely out of the question for the brigade to have been rushed to the planet from another warzone and find themselves in an unfamiliar environment without time to repaint and re assess their camo schemes for the vehicles......... just a thought....

As always though.. really impressive work mate! Really gives me a lift to see your updates!

I love the complete transformation this has undergone, and i'm liking the direction your heading with this now
Cant wait to see more .

That's looking great!

As a suggestion about force fields in the future, maybe just imply its existence. Ya know?

Sculpt the lava/sludge/whatever curving up around some unseen barrier.

I imagine if its done right it would look like some sort of invisible bubble.

Sorry to hear about your shoulder. I sadly know all about shoulder problems. The only advice I have is do not ignore the doctor's orders.

The diorama looks very nice indeed. For the force field, did you consider using acetate? You can get it and actually print on it with an inkjet printer. I think it is also called transparency film. Mentioned in case you haven't heard of it.

If the force field is invisible maybe a greenish blue glow along the edge of the sludge to show where the 2 are in contact almost like an electrical charge.

Either that or I would have glued the hexes directly to the hull like a field modification and done some glowy effect to show they were activated

I miss the lava, I though it looked amazing, but I like the toxic river too.

Sorry about the shoulder, hope it gets better.

Loving your attention to detail....definitely subbed.

Hi all,
Thank you for your comments and feedback - especially on the force field. Yeah, if I would've planned it earlier I probaly could've managed something spectacular, but it was a rather on-the-fly creation based on some of the early feedback, with regards to lava, heat, asphyxation etc
But I also hear that the chemical waste idea is rather "approved"
Thanks Mates!

Well, the shoulder is keeping me rather busy with doctors visits, physio-therapy twice a week, and the pain gifts me with sleepless nights to boot.
So my updates are considerably slower than my usual pace.

Well, as chrisb pointed out, I had the corrosion line on the listing vehicle wrong, as it needs to be aligned to the hull line, not the waterline - thanks for pointing it out, I completely missed it


Once this was fixed I gave the vehicles their names
Tito and Tarantula


I also added some unit and vehicle markings.


And then started weathering.


Part is brush painted, part is sponge-applied.



Ready for pigments


Here are the pigments applied and the spirit still wet.


Pigments in the dried state.


And with a coat of matte varnish.


Next I prepared for the illumination effects, by applying a first light white dry-brush.


And then the first colored light with the airbrush.


The howitzers muzzle flash together with the illumination effect


Not quite there yet.


Sorry for the blurry image.


Some of the light effects closer up.


And the final effect for the howitzer

Me likes

And last-not-least the Rambo in the rear hatch got his illumination effect.


This pretty much concluded the painting stage for the vehicles and the terrain. Next is the Infantry.
As I was prepping the troopers I realized the Gunner lost his head...quite literally


Digging through my heads box, I selected another Mad Robots head


And finally I applied a first coat of Terracotta base color.


Well, this is as far as I got over the last 2 weeks.
I hope the update was worth the wait
I look forward to your C&C.
Cheers
Klaus

...Sleepless nights and the need to sleep, or try too, in very odd positions. I had to learn to sleep sitting up while I was recuperating :(

The green of the chemical waste looks better against the colors of the vehicles than the lava colors did. So, an improvement

Are you going to add another layer of highlighting to the OSL for the howitzer?

Spectacular work. The way you do lighting is brilliant.

Amazing work Klaus!! Not that anyone would expect anythin less!

I hope the sholder is coming along and stops giving you so much hassle!

All the ebst.. and keep up the amazing work!

Sorry to drop this here, but.....

Do you remember me talking about a forcefield effect, only showing where it is hit by enemy fire type of thing...well I found the pic I was talking about.



I know, I know, but I am sure you can replicate this even at this stage, or keep it for future use.

I actually really love the way yours is looking right now, the vehicles look like they are totally "there" in that situation.

Wow Klaus this one is crazy awesome! And I must ask is there any inspiration from "Apocalypse Now" because it really reminds me boating to Kurtz' temple base.

Amazing Klaus, I can't wait to see it all finished up.

Cam, that looks like some partially melted plastic, doesn't it? like... a Christmas bulb broken up and the ends melted soft.

Hey guys!
just a short update.
I'm still alive.
I had my shoulder operation and am recovering rather well.
I even started on a piece for a Halloween contest, but my shoulder isn't well enough for real painting.

So instead I did some clay sculpting :lol:
Maybe you want to look at it :

http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2014/10/finally.html
Cheers
Klaus

Glad your back on the mend.

Really creative Halloween creations. That hag face reminds me of at least one of my relatives . Slug hunter looks cool as well.

Glad to hear all went well and you're on the road to recovery.

Great to hear your recovering from your op, and nice work with the sculpts

Wonderful to hear you are doing Ok.

The sculpting is brilliant. Love it, and probably good for you, in a physiotheropy way.

Miss you around here dude.

HE LIVES!!!

I figured you were having surgery when you hadn't popped on here in a while.

Keep healing and don't overdo it!

Nice to hear you are feeling better.
The sculpting looks really great, keep up the good work
and a fast recovery

Thank you guys!
Thank you for the good wishes and warm welcome (back)

Well, my shoulder is improving, though I'm still not able to do any long sessions with the paitn brush.
But I did get some stuff done.

This spider is sculpted by me


Well, and painted too


Looks cool, doesn't it?


With these few images I wish you a Happy Halloween!
Cheers
klaus

That looks great, I know a few people who would freak out if they saw it .

And I'm one of them....and yes, that was unsettling seeing that pop up.

Which I guess means you did a good job with it

Good sculpting, Klaus.

Good to hear the shoulder is healing well.

Great Spider sculpt. Have you seen the newest photos of the goliath birdeater spider? Shudder.

Good to hear your on the mend.

You know, I'm kinda mad no one pointed me to this blog beforehand.

Still, subbed. You had me at this...



Now if you will excuse me, I have 50+ pages to delve through...

Edit: Having read a lot of this, I am glad your shoulder is healing. I had a surgery not too long ago, so I know that sometimes healing can be a struggle (I hope it isn't in your case,) and I wish you luck and a speedy recovery. Also I love the ship diorama.

I know the last post was a few weeks ago... but ..... AHOY KLAUS!! Welcome back ..... So.... a bionic shoulder eh..... to give you an even more awesome standard of work ability!!

Glad to hear it is all on the mend!

Hey guys,
just letting you know I'm still alive
Unfortunately I'm not doing any WH40K stuff right now. I'm still on the clay sculpting trip and am in the middle of dragon sculpt:
http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2014/12/dragon-rider-1.html


I hope after the Christmas break I will find my way back to WH40K.
@MagosBiff90 - thanks Mate! Yeah, I just need to get the bionic shoulder to adjust to the smaller scale of 40K rather than the size of the clay sculpts.

@Stormwall - Glad you like the "Flying Brick"
I hope to have some 40K stuff to post sooner than later.

Until then you can find me in my blog

Cheers
Klaus

Very nice work on the dragon, that's coming along nicely,
Makes me want to get back to large scale sculpting .

Out of interest what type of clay are you using for the dragon?

Thanks

hk1x1 - it's a relatively smooth brown/black clay:


Pretty fine chamotte of 0-0.5mm, approx. 25%

I hope this helps.
Cheers
klaus

Excellent sculpting. Great to see you around. Glad to see you are recovering. I must get myself over to your blog more often.

Thank you Mate!

Here's a 40K scale shot


So rahter large, huh?
Cheers
klaus

holy hell, i bow in recognition to your excellence... this is great stuff!!!!
Keep it up!
i love the ghillie suit!
FMJ

Hey thank you guys!
Just wnated to let you know, I completed the Dragon Rider:


and while this cures and waits to get burned, I started on another piece.

For the sake of this forum I call it "Ork Titan" aka "Beppo the Slug Hunter"


So, Merry Christmas, peaceful holidays, and a Happy New Year to all of you
Cheers
Klaus

Nicely done Klaus and way to return with a bang

Great sculpting skills Klaus! A joy to see your work as always!

I very much like how you did an explorer, no warrior dude/duderina with the dragon! We grim-derp GW-Fags tend to forget there is more to Fantasy and SF than killing and dying in grizzly ways. Nice to be remembered of this, now! After all it's the holiday of love we are about to celebrate...

Riders is brilliant.

Beppo looks fab, properly determind stance.

You've done a really nice job on that dragon rider, I love all the little details, they tell a story just by looking at them .

Thank you guys!

Just a short update.
Since I'm currently not working on any WH40K stuff, but still want to share with you, just an external link:
http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2015/01/the-princess-1.html

Sorry, I hope you don't consider it SPAM.
Cheers
Klaus

Stunning work. Looking very promising.

She's looking very nice Klaus. Nice sculpting work.

just a short teaser


More in my blog:
http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2015/01/the-princess-2.html

Cheers
Klaus

This is definitely not spam , its excellent work.
You seem to have the human form element worked out nicely, I always struggle a bit, especially with the face.

It's her jewellery that really impresses me. Great detail work, Klaus.

But, yeah, damn faces are hard to sculpt.

Hey guys!

Sorry for the lack of updates, but I'm still not 40K'ing.

However, I'm still sculpting and painting
Here's the progress on the Princess as of last night

The Golden Throne


and the seated Princess on the throne


you can see more in my blog:
http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/

Cheers
klaus

Ahoy Klaus! Great to see you back! even though its not your awesome 40k work.....

That is an outstanding paintjob on the throne..... really pristine and valuable looking. The effect on those blue feathers is something lovely to look at!

Hope all is well with you!

Hrm. I feel as though her head might be a little large. Or were you deliberately going for a different scale? Though it might just be the perspective and the fact that she's seated that's messing with me.

Looking good, love the paint work on those feathers, they really stand out

Hi all,
thank you for your feedback.
@Anvildude - urgh! Hopefully not!
I've been measuring and checking constantly, but I know I'm not perfect, so I really HOPE she's all well proportioned - cross your fingers mate!

Well, current progress is rather slow.
But I managed to work on the carpets. I have the base colors and patterns down.


Even without light and shadows I think they already look great in the scene.


I also started to add patterns to the sheets on the ground.


This pattern was really hard-core (I'd never do it again) and I still have some clean up to do.


But in the scene the result looks worth the effort.


Now I have to decide if and what kind of patterns I will add to the other sheets.
Looking at this image, you see there are still two furs, a small shield, and the sheets draped around the throne.


What do you think?
I look forward to your comments and feedback. Suggestions welcome
Cheers
Klaus

Looks really great!

Go all the way, Klaus! The effect of the patterned sheets is so fantastic, it is worth every effort. Plus there is a profane reason, the patterns help distract from the fact that those sheets are not fabric. Otherwise you would need texture, or in case of silk etc you would have to work the material way too thin.
Milady seems to be a bit messy, or did she fit a temper tandrum & throw around her sheets? But it's nice to see she cultivates Calvatia Gigantea in her throne room for a living.

- btw Head and body proportions look perfectly fitting to me.

Yeah, in the other shot they look fine. I think it was just a perspective thing that was messing with me.

And you don't need to have fancy patterns on everything. I think maybe just doing a cross-hatched drybrush in a slightly different color on one or two of them (for solid-colored fabric) could work to give a little 'texture' without going whole hog. Maybe even doing drybrushed highlights in such a way that the 'fuzz' you get at the edges of a drybrush stroke follow the grain of the cloth would work, without painting the entire cloth.

Seriously mind blowing - I have no pearls of wisdom to add other than this is amazing

Thank you guys!

Well, actually, I did work structures into the rugs and some of the drapes:


I gues they will be better visible with the first wash


While I do like the look, I think it looks a bit too "wild" - or as Hruotland says she apparently threw a Temper Tandrum

(naw, it's the little dragon playing around )

So I repainted most of the drapes in red


and added the first patterns


I'm not sure if I'll do the pattern also on the other pieces...
any thoughts?


I think it looks a lot better now.




So what do you think?
Better with mostly red? Shall I add more patterns to these red pieces or leave them uni-colored?
Thanks for your comments and feedback.
Cheers
Klaus

I'm speachless, but I can still type so thats ok. Are all the little balls pearls and gemstones?

Hrm. You don't have anything to really tie the throne to the base. Maybe some of a similar blue to the feathers you did up top? A red and blue pattern would look pretty flash.

Anvildude wrote:
Hrm. You don't have anything to really tie the throne to the base. Maybe some of a similar blue to the feathers you did up top? A red and blue pattern would look pretty flash.

Hi Anvildude,
thanks for the feedback.
I'm not sure I quite understand
Sounds interesting, but I can't wrap my head around it - can you elaborate a bit?
Thaaaaaanks
Klaus

I think perhaps he means to have some blue / gold elements on the ground to bring the colours together to make it read better together. Great sculpt though Klaus! Top notch.... I have actually been going back through your thread again.... I think after I finish my Macharius I am going to build a "Klaus Inspired" superheavy tank!!

Good to see you back and around by the way!

Yeah, that. As it is, the model has a sort of 'Farbverlauf' going on, where es ist Rot ünter und Blaue über. Haben sie ein bischen Blaue am Boden, also alle zusammengebracht.

If that makes any sense.

Or, in other words, right now the model is more blue on top, and more red on the bottom. Putting some blue on the bottom will bring things together to make a more cohesive whole.

Thank you guys!

@Anvildude - OK, now I got it
Well, I hope my decision will please you

@weetyskemian44 - sorry I forgot to reply earlier... :(
Yes, the white balls are to be little lights - or glow spheres - I just hope they will work out as intended

Since the last update I added one more set of patterns to the rear drapes.
Simple stylized dragons. Once the two Watch-Wher's sit in front the drapes will be hardly visible.


Speaking of the two Wher's.
My plan was to make them "bronze" colored. After three coats I had a halfway decent base color, together with the blue eyes.


Getting the first shadows on was also relatively easy. But somehow I couldn't get a decent and even color coat - it always looked dirty or smeared. So I decided to remove the paint completely!
It was quite a mess, I can assure you.


But then I finally got them completely color free.


And gave them a new matte black base coat. And changed the color setting completely.
Now they are blue. Shades worked out better this time.



And with the little Fire-Lizards - but they will hopefully be bronze colored!
Cross your fingers for me.
I'm quite pleased with the blue skin and they work with the other colors.





So what do you think?
I look forward to your comments and feedback.
Cheers
Klaus

The blue/grey colour is really nice actually. As a whole this is stunning my friend.

Hey guys,
since thast update I painted the little Fire-Lizards.
The golden one:


the bronze:


the green:


and the red:


All assembled:


Then I started painting the Princess.
She will have black hair:


After that I started to paint all the clothes and gold stuff (only the base colors so far)


Next she got some make-up (still looks rather harsh, as the face itself has now shadows and highlights yet)


Actually I'm pretty pleased


So, what do you think?
I look forward to your feedback and suggestions.
Cheers
Klaus

Stunning! just wow!

I'm not sure you should actually put in paint shadows and highlights. Those are usually used to add texture and volume to something without that texture or volume, and this model is intricate enough (and realistic enough) that I think you should rather paint it in a 'realistic' way- maybe try using washes or clear coats to get more depth and scattering in the skins, and shine on the metals- then just let the lighting of the environment do the shadows and highlights for you.

Just came across this thread and if the last few pages are anything to go by I'm gonna have tabout 50 pages of reading to do.

Thanks carlos13th!
I hope the other pages didn't disappoint you

Stunning... just stunning..... Paint skills in abundance!

Great to see your work as always!

Outstanding work. Amazing work.

Good to see that you're recovering from the shoulder problems.

The paint job on the face is excellent, not only well executed but you can get a sense of hauteur and character coming through. Expression is very hard to capture but it come across so well here. 3 thumbs up.

Hi guys,

thanks for the positive feedback!

Well, I still have a little touching-up and cleaning-up to do, but other than that, I call her complete


*littlehappydance*


And a final comparison without paint


and the finished model


So what do you think?
Here's how it all started:
http://fischers-design-shop.blogspot.de/2015/01/the-princess-1.html

Mind blowing. Amazing work you’ve got there.

Really great! Good choices for pose, composition, and color all around. Something to be really proud of.

Beautiful work Klaus!

Looks brilliant , very well done.

Thank you guys!

BTW, I'm giving some of my unfished projects away for free
Check it out:
http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/640187.page

Good job on the dragon lady. Looks excellent.

You are going to do something with the little glowing ball things and not just leave them white?

Good luck finding homes for all that stuff. Very generous being free.

Excellent! Massive modelling Kudos. She approaches perfection.

I love the carpets and fabrics most of all.

Jeez Klaus, you outdid yourself with her.

Thank you!
She even made it to the CMoN homepage
http://www.coolminiornot.com/376007

Cheers
Klaus
P.S.: Started a new project already

Is this going to be Slaaneshi, or just a chick on a velociraptor?

Are you enjoying the larger scale of the current and latest project more, or just looking to change it up?

"Just a chick on a Raptor"


@whalemusic - yes right now I enjoy the larger scale and complete thematic freedom.
No need for grim dark or any lore/fluff to adhere to. Just what I like and with the bigger scale I can do a lot more details
We'll see how long this will last

Hey Klaus,

I hope all is well with you!

Just spent my lunch hour reading through your pages here ...... again.... and thought I would message to see fi there were any new projects or developments going on! Grim Dark preferably..... but the chick on the raptor was a really interesting piece also!

Looking forward to your enxt update!

take it easy!

cheers,

The riders looking great, shes got very nice shape and muscle definition already .
You seem to have a knack for sculpting the human form, I've always found it easier working on creatures, aliens etc,
as there's a lot fewer rules you have to follow in order to make it look right.

Looking forward to seeing more of this as it progresses .

Hey guys!
Sorry for the lack of updates.
But since my latest projects aren't Warhammer related I didn't want to post them here and risk the closing of the post.
But hey, lets see what happens


Actually this project was so much fun it went quicker than I expected.
I finished painting the raptor


I decided to give her red leather


and this is how it looked with just the base color applied


The red leather finished


Facial details


and done!


Here are some proper images, with good lights and background (please let me know which one you like best, so I can use it for the contest):
1.


2.


3.


4.


5.


6.


7.


8.


9.


10.


11.


12.


13.


14.


15.


16.


And I also kitbashed/Scratchbuilt a watercraft out of a 1:24 Bentley 4,5 Liter Blower and a 1:48 BF110.
I was able to also finish the paintjob on the "Swamp Thing" (my wife was on a business trip for a week )

I have no paint-in-process images here (but can deliver if requested).
I'm quite happy with the result, the only annoying thing is that I didn't think when I appied the varnish at the end, and now the lights and the windshield are opaque :(











I hope you like it.
Cheers
Klaus

Love them both! You could try brush-on gloss coate to fix the fogging.

As to off topicness The Mods seem pretty cool round here. If you don't do any lewd sculpts I doubt they'll shut you down. And if they do decide you're getting to far from minis they'll probably give you a warning first.

Ahh, love that flying car thing, fantastic stuff!

Great work, Klaus.

I think, even though it's not miniature wargaming figures, this kind of work is modelling related. The skills and techniques used for this is very relevant to "normal" warhammer (other games are available) models, and by extension is relevant to miniature wargaming.

and personally, I've had no issues with the sculptures and earrings I've shown off in my blogs, and those are less "relevant" than what you are doing here.

As for the photos; no one picture shows everything on the model in one go, so a selection of angles would be best. But, if I had to just choose one picture, I'd say #13. You can see both faces and the angle gives the sense of motion that you have in the model.

And the car/plane thing is an ingenious build. Very nice.

Fantastic .

I like how the rider and raptor complement each other,
you really get the feeling their moving as one .

Love it all, great work as always.

Your work no matter what the subject is relevant and inspirational to us all. So you should definitely keep posting your progress here.

Besides we miss you.

Hrm. There's something about the rider's face that seems separated from the rest of the model. I think it feels maybe a little too angular or stylized compared to the smother and more realistic curves on the rest of it.

Thank you guys!
Here's one more:


Cheers
klaus

YYAAYY!!!!!

Good to see you Klaus!

As always impressive work! That Rider sculpt is awesome! The scales on the raptor are very nicely done!

But my fav is the watercar! That really looks cool! The open cockpit is a cool idea! I think I may have to attempt something like this in the future!

Hey guys,
still checking in, eh?
Glad you're still interested

With the rider scene complete I have already started a new project

This time it is a sculpt for a dragon-girl hybrid. So half-and-half.
The basic idea was easy, a girl with wings, some dragon skin, and maybe a special head.

The scale was also smaller this time - she's "only" 16cm fully standing


But just a standing dragon-girl would be rather boring.
So I thought a bit more about the scene.
Thinking of Smaug, it was clear she needs a lair with lots of gold...

...and while browsing in the library of the University of Google I ran across an image of Joan d'Arc by Boris - kneeling, like praying with a sword.
Yes, this is the pose I wanted.


Then I built out the base with lots of gold coins (oh would I have known what I know now, I would've thought of something different - I SWEAR!)


For the skin of the wings I rolled out some ProCreate very thinly and then pressed it onto a sheet of crumpled aluminium foil


Once these were cured I cut them to shape and glued them to the wing skeleton - then used liquid GreenStuff to work the seams.
This is how she looked before priming


To prepare for painting I took a series of light reference photos

This way I know where to position shadows, where light effects ect.

And then I started painting the base - as a contrast to the warm fire light and gold I chose a rather cold grey for the stones


and then I painted the gold base color...


Just this bit of gold took me a total of 6 hours :(

So now I hope I haven't bitten off more than I can chew
Cheers
Klaus

Hey Klaus! Good to see you back with an update! I hope all is well,

Lovely start... I like the pose and the position of the wings.....

Cant wait to see more!

Le sigh. Nobody ever does dragon wings right. Yours are better than most, but the place where they connect to the back, the membrane is way too thin (un-wide? I mean the area, not the thickness), making them look like cartoon wings- the membrane should probably stretch down at least to the hips.

At least you didn't make the extra fingers protrude from the shoulder, like I've seen some people do, or come straight off the bones. I don't see any joints, though, which gives the wings a very Pterosaur look.

Also, if you do put on a thumb, be sure that it points towards the tip of the wing, instead of inwards. Wings are just big hands, remember.

I think your diorama and miniature are coming along swimmingly.

Another beautiful sculpt, plus i love all the detail on the base .

Amazing work! can't wait to see more!!!

Thank you guys!

@Anvildude - yeah, reality arguments...
While I can agree on the wing size for the actual wings nad "thumb direction" I kind of followed the classic fantasy masters like Boris
http://img.phombo.com/img1/photocombo/39940/Fantasy_Art_by_Boris_Vallejo_-THRG-_Mascot-287.jpg_151.jpg
http://defwalls.com/wallpapers-n/women-artwork-Boris-Vallejo-_11529-60.jpg
http://www.middian.net/Galerie3/Boris%20Vallejo%20-%20Wings%20of%20the%20Night.jpg
or Chis Achilleos
http://gistlabs.net/Dragon_Forest/pictures/Chris_ACHILLEOS/AchilleosDragonspell.jpg
http://www.drachenserver.de/wordpress/wp-content/gallery/chris-achilleos/chris_achilleos_elric.jpg


Well, since the last update I pretty much completed the background and added the OSL effects


with that done I started to paint "Bian the Red"


and this is as far as I got


Still a lot to paint and do, but I'm quite please with the result so far.
what do you think?
Cheers
Klaus

You know, on a second look, I think what's bothering me most about the wings is that they're projecting straight up from the shoulders, as opposed to being mounted more on the back, then having a joint letting the wing bend up behind. As it is, the wing's kinda columnar, with drapery hanging off it.



And just to make sure I'm not rustling too many jimmies, I think the sculpt, overall, is magnificent. Just trying to point out what my own artistic sensibilities notice.

Looks really good!

Anvildude wrote:
....

And just to make sure I'm not rustling too many jimmies, I think the sculpt, overall, is magnificent. Just trying to point out what my own artistic sensibilities notice.

Not at all!
I'm asking for feedback, and your's is always constructive

well... the wing issue refers to lifeforms that is as unrealistic as can be... dragons or dragon kin are purely factious, thus the depiction is only limited to the vision of the respective artist...never was the term "your mileage may vary" been more appropriate...

also... i just realized how long it has been since i last have been here... man have i missed out on so much...

your last pieces are truly unique...Cleopatra is an awesome model, making an homage is always something that shows respect and the ability to add a new twist to an existing theme...
with cleopatra you did that for sure...

the hunt is also a remarkable model, it is clearly to be seen for us that your recent studies in sculpting not only inspired you but showed you a new world to express yourself!

if i may add only one minor criticism...i think both cleopatra and the huntress show a face that makes them both almost as twins... i think you could have added some more distinctive facial expressions...
(tho...don´t ask me on how to do that... chucking out ideas and criticism is easier that having actually helpful hints to solve these issues...)

also... good deal we already made you a riveteer... making all these gold coins ... did you sculpt them or did you make them via holepunch?
the base is quasi the pinnacle of details...can´t imagine how exhausted you had to be after all that...

well... looking forward to more

cheers, vik

I think as far as faces go, it might be a good idea to do a bunch of 'practice busts' of different cartoonishly exaggerated expressions. One howling in rage, one sobbing their eyes out, beaming with pride, etc. etc.


On the subject of Dragons and their wings, I've always found it amusing that creatures which are supposedly reptilian have mammal wings. I mean, I know it's because they were originally depictions of 'the Devil' and bats were evil birds and all that hoo-haw, but I find it interesting that nobody ever seems to give them pterosaur-style wings, with the single membrane span over a single fingerbone- and proper Dinosaur wings are incredibly rare as well.

Hey Klaus!

I hope all is well!

Slightly off subject... but I was wondering what happened to the "Scarabeus" model that you put a link to in Vik's Leviathan thread....

Just wondered as I had never seen it before and it looks like it would have been a really cool model!

The new sculpt is looking awesome.... the base is really well detailed and the spilled gold goins and gems adds a really nice feel to it!

Cheers,

 MagosBiff90 wrote:
Hey Klaus!

I hope all is well!

Slightly off subject... but I was wondering what happened to the "Scarabeus" model that you put a link to in Vik's Leviathan thread....

Just wondered as I had never seen it before and it looks like it would have been a really cool model!

The new sculpt is looking awesome.... the base is really well detailed and the spilled gold goins and gems adds a really nice feel to it!

Cheers,

ha! The Scarabeus
THat was actually the first major project of mine and was never completed - it is now resting on one of my cabinets


While it already had some cool features, like the retractable rocket launcher



the sides that can be opened,



or the very cool Emergency Room

that can be extended out




and a rather detailed "bridge"


But in the end it was too clumps and crude

and it had some severe design flaws
Some of the floor alignements, ladders, doord ect. would be hell to operate, and tremendous safety hazards (in real live)

I learned soooooo much during the build and I strated to build finer and smaller, that I abandoned it. I kept it as an option to maybe revamp it for Ork use
But actually never got around to it *blush*

Thanks for asking

Here's a vote for Orkifying it! Convert the emergency room into a Mad Doc's shop, filling the bridge with grots being bossed around by a Big Mek, a Boss and some Meganobs hanging out ready to deploy, maybe drinking Squig Beer and laughing at someone pinned under a fallen beam.

gotta ask... are these repeating details folding wallmounted chairs???... what a cool idea... and i love the ER...i think i have to nick here and there from that cornucopia of ideas... the bridge is very cool...
the ideas i have for my leviathan start to mix with your work in a kind of melange of homage and industrial espionage...

Yes, they were (very simple) folding seats
Glad you like the idea

that idea is very inventive and cool... and will find it´s way into my build for sure!

I love the weapon system that s sitting on top of the bridge, Looks really cool!!

DEFINETLY want to try something like that in the future... I remember the really cool gun units that sat on the "Athena" also...

AAAHHH darn it I am sitting at work now with thoughts of modelling and building...

 MagosBiff90 wrote:
...

AAAHHH darn it I am sitting at work now with thoughts of modelling and building...

And NEVER enough time!
Tell me

That thing is absolutely begging to be Orkified.

Thank you guys!

Well, let's see if I get my 40K vibe back and then Orkifying the Scarabeus will definately be a project to persue...

For the time being I'm desperately trying to complete the dragon-girl "Bian the Red" by July 10th - despite temperatures of 30°-40°C / 86° - 104°F here in Germany.
Sometimes I have the feeling the paint dries before it reaches the mini

Nevertheless I was able to paint most of the gold, gems, and scales.






But now I will have to re-paint all of the skin and work up the shadows and highlights.


I hope you like this rather short update.
Cheers
Klaus

Her face is looking distinctly Chinese to me. I think it's the roundness, with lack of protrusion in the face. Are you going to follow that with the skin tone?

Anvildude wrote:
Her face is looking distinctly Chinese to me.

Absolutely. That was the intention
Her name "Bian" is based on a novel by Mark Henwick - even though the Bian in the book is an Asian Vampire...

Anvildude wrote:
I think it's the roundness, with lack of protrusion in the face. Are you going to follow that with the skin tone?

Well, I have several Sasian friends and colleagues and to be honest the skin color of most doesn't differ that much from a standard tan European
But yes, I address this, togehter with the warm light tones from the flames and gold around, it will be a rather warm, golden skin tone.
Thanks Mate

Done!
I managed to complete her in time.
I'm not quite satisfied with the flames in the braziers - they're not bright enough - but other than that I'm happy with her.
So here is Bian the Red, daughter of Hydana the dragon and the mortal Lucianus of Camore.
She is seen in her lair, between her precious gold, pearls and gems - a treasure worthy of any real dragon - in a prayer to the God of Fire.









I hope you like the result

Cheers
Klaus

Pretty blooming awesome work Klaus! The face is really ... strange...(in a good way)... you can really tell she is a hybrid between mortal and dragon... its quite eerie...

Really like the darker paintjob.... makes it quite menacing too!

Wow!
Long time no update, huh?

Well, summer was pretty lazy for me and I hardly did anything.
But towards the end of summer I decided to pick things back up.

First project was this Kyudó Archer - a traditional Japanese archer.

It was a commision for a cousins husband, who's a Kyudo archer and has the libra as his zodica sign. So the archer is standing on a scale, with the libra in it.
It was sculpted with SuperSculpey (50:50 mix of firm and standard), then sanded and polished, and finally sealed with clear laquer.

The second project was a pencil cup for my little nephew who had his first school day 3 weeks ago, and with school he got his first desk.
So I sculpted this little dragon pencil holder for him


Well, and with thse two completed, I started my first real project.
It's called " Ilse Sturmfeder, the (chrome) assassin"
As usual I started with a wire armature - made from a metal cloth hanger, the ones you get from the dry cleaners


Then I added mass, using SuperSculpey - the new medium mix

as you can see, I plan a rather dynamic pose for her.

After the general proportions I did "robotize" her. The idea for Ilse was inspired by the old "Sexy Robots" by Hajime Sorayama.


Mostly complete, now with face shield


and then I created her blades using standard 1.5mm plastic card


Once pleased with everything I primed her.


After the primer she got the very light blue base color


and I added the first horizon lines - indicating where the refelctions will be.


Still very crude and a very long way to go
I hope you like todays update and I look forward to your comments and feedback.
Cheers
Klaus

one feels ashamed to still wish you would go back to the lands of 28mm heroic miniatures...seeing these delicate sculpts...
the archer looks very nice, the simplistic touch is probably even a hint of a pure mind, concentration etc...a very interesting model! i have seen similar sculpts/carvings from wood...a very stunning work!

the pencil holder is hilarious and good looking...since your cousin
is starting school, this piece reminds me of "drache kokusnuss" a series of kids books...one especially made for school starters...

the Sorayama hommage assassin looks also very good... tho...forgive me my heretic mind, the boob department looks a tad "stuck" on...well after all she is a robot...but these could have had a slight lower er...(lack of words here^^) position...

Stop it Klaus! You're inspiring me to return to my plans for Eldar mythological figure sculptures for terrain. My list is already too long!


Seriously, fantastic work! Really great seeing where you've taken your skills. Keep building, sculpting, creating. Keep inspiring.

Hey guys!
Still here? Still reading along?

Wow, you guys have a lot more stamina and endurance than I have

Well, since the last update I did continue with Ilse and added some color.


However, on October 30th we had to put our 17 1/2 year old cat Lilly to sleep


As you guys can imagine we're both heartbroken and very sad.
So we kinda fled the empty aparment and went on a 2 week vacation to Cuba.
That was nice and distracting and recuperating.

But when coming back, everytime I looked at Ilse, I saw Lilly there, lying on my desk....


I just can't worj on her right now.
So she's now in the cabinet...

But I still have an urge to "hobby up something"...
I have an idea - based on "Stemming the Green Tide". Not an exact remake, but maybe a mix with the "Tomb Raider" dio....?
I did some scetches, looked up images on the internet, and last night I raided the bits box...


So lets see what the next few days bring
Cheers
Klaus

Oh man.

I'm sorry you had to go through that.

I can't wait to see what you come up with but, take things easy.

still here and omg that cannot be a fig!!!! amazing paintjob, its.......wtf!!!!! stunning stunning stuff!!!

I'm so sorry to hear about your cat. I've had pets pass on too and they're missed so vey much. As much a member of the family as any can be.

I'm pretty excited to see a 40k diorama come around again.

Nice update on the projects. You've got buckets of talent.

Sorry to hear about your cat, it's always a shame when a small hairy member of the family passes away.

EDC

Good to see you sir.

Sorry to hear the news, always hard. RIP Lilly.

Look forward to some more inspirational work.

its exactly why we don´t have any pets...just for that reason...i still remember passed away dogs and cats and even a small rabbit...i don´t want to feel that kind of hurt if avoidable...


feeling a slight pang of guilt for still not having worked on the tomb raider dio...

See, that's why you get tortoises. They outlive you. And your children. And possibly their children as well.

It's always tough saying goodbye to a pet. Condolences.

Thanks guys!
I'm really glad to see so many of you still around
Thank you all for the condolences.
Here's a little photoshop I did of our cats.

They are remembered well, and we both think back of all the good times we had with them. We're still giving us a bit more time, but we're absolutely sure, that we will soon (probably mid next year) have cats again
No tortoise, no cat-less household - to my wife and me they just give too much back.

Well, as mentioned, the hobby itch seems to be back
The idea bouncing in my head is based on "Stemming the Green Tide" mixed with the "Tomb Raider" fluff section.
An expedition of the Crimson Guards sent to recover a valuable artifact. Not sure if it will be on Dencara or on another planet...
Just as they have finally discovered the sacred item and are about to recover it, they are attacked by Orks.
So it will be a "last stand" type of battle in a temple(?) ruin with the Crimson Guards against Orks.
From a composition point of view there will be a throne like feature at the top end of a long (stair) rise lit by blue-ish moonlight (a beam coming through a crack in the roof?), while the actual fighting, lit by the gun flashes will happen on the stairs below, with most of the Orks attacking out of the dark.
...
hopefully
...


So, with this bouncing around my brain cage, I raided my Space Marine bits box.


Unfortunately I'm no longer in the possession of the Space Hulk throne piece with the dead Marine, but hey..."Selbst ist der Mann"

(no pressure on you Vik )

Still plenty of cleanup and GreenStuff necessary.


Some of the basic fighting poses - though I think I will not do the Flamer, the cinematic effect would draw too much attention.


These two in hand-to-hand combat - not sure if it will be a fist fight, or if the Marine will have a sword....


A fallen Marine in his last defense...


This will also be more of a hand-to-hand, close-in pose - maybe an Ork striking down with a big axe.


And (if I can make it look convincing) a downed Marine with an Ork on his back, trying to suffocate or choke him.


Well, this is as far as I got.
I think I will start building up the stairs next, so I can work on finalizing the poses.


What do you think?
Ideas, suggestions?
I look forward to your feedback.
Cheers
Klaus

Beautiful cats. Bitter sweet memories. We have had cats the whole 25 years of marriage. Don't think I will ever not have them.

Now the scrap!

Geezer on throne looks awesome, but I dare you to do a ork skull on it like some form of desecration.

Love the other guys, but instead of swords what about stools or pews, kind of parody of a bar fight, but in a chapel!

I did an ork a while ago, a warboss with a marine being crushed, but the marine had his sword up to the hilt in the belly of the ork while he was at it, it was for the Face to Face competition, would love to see your take on that.

And I have had an idea for a while of a marine or IG stood with a torch in the corner of a room, coming through the doorway, but what he does not see is behind the door an ork huge and brooding about to clobber him. The ork would be all in black apart from the highlights from the torch, fantastic opportunity for OSL. You could do it so much better than me. That stuck away in the corner somewhere of the dio would be great.

In the end everything you do is inspirational and fabulous so looking forward to this.

Excellent sculpting work , especially that archer piece. I love how you've successfully blended Kyudo with the Zodiac, it's a clever piece of design.

Klaus hath returned!

Firstly, I want to send my condolences! I have 3 dogs and canf imagine going through that!

Second..... great to see you back in the groove so to speak! I believe it is well documented how much I enjoy & respect your work and I cannot wait to see where this is headed!

Im getting no time myself at all at the hobby but very much look forward to seeing the progress here!

Cheers, MB

Thank you guys!
I hope your festivity preparations are well underway and you're not too stressed out to enjoy some hobby time

@MagosBiff - Let's see how long I can keep up the energy
But right now it looks good.

@hk1x1 - thanks Mate

@Camkierhi - Thanks!
Nice idea (the bar stool), but I'm not sure if I can really pull it off. For now he's holding a sword. But let's see how it all progresses.

Again: THANKS GUYS!

With the basic Marine actors assembled I started to build up the environment.
First was the throne and its platform.


The brick-factory working at full capacity


Slowly building up the base - with some Styrofoam as support. Two columns at the lower end to give the scene a frame.
While the PVA takes some time to cure, I use a ruler and some weight (a bunch of SuperSculpey packs) to keep the bricks in position and leveled.



Most of the brickwork completed.


The throne as center piece in the back. A first position test with the Marines.


Not 100% sure, but I think this will be balanced enough, with the top 3 Marines providing light with their muzzle flashes, while the lower areas will be darker - maybe some light effects form the energy blades?


Then I created some skeletons from the original struggle, hundreds of years ago...


Only a dead Ork is a good Ork?



Plus the two dead throne-guards


Still needs a lot of cleanup, detailing, and of course the attacking Orks.
But I hope it already gives a good impression of how it will look in the end.
I look forward to your feedback and suggestions.
Cheers
Klaus

Holy hell...

 LeCacty wrote:
Holy hell...

Thanks

BTW, I think I'd like to add an Indiana-Jones-Style character to the scene - near the throne, just about to pick up the sacred item (open to suggestions too).
Any ideas, samples (of models built)?
Thanks
Klaus

Sweet feth that is gonna be champion!! Great great work

Maybe an inquisitor jones?