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

Wow...wow!

Where did you get the artwork from the "Flight of the Tenax"? Did you make it?

CMDante wrote:Very nice start. The one thing I would say is that the knees look like they're a bit close together, he looks to have an almost cartoon like sneaking pose going on. I'm sure it will look fine when finished though.

"Be vewy, vewy quiet, I'm huwnting tywwanids..."

Lovely converting so far Tael, and great to see how huge the scout and marine will really be.
The scout is so nicely proportioned, it was hard to get a sense of size before.

Hi All,

Thanks for your feedback, appreciate the comments alot, mostly because the whole 'huntin' Nids' angle is quite true, this first Marine has been largely left untouched components wise, because I liked the slower pace of the leg positions.

This first, as yet undisclosed character, is a cautious Marine.. noted for being studious in his approach to running about Hiveships. Like birds going silent in a forest, there are signs within Tyranid ships even, that portend danger.

I chose this character after realising the inherent pose would develop, but also the fact it eases me into modelling this kind of piece. Following that, as Migsula mentions, we all have differing techniques.

Mine is a merger of those who have showcased their work, and I also tend to have more faith in my Greenstuff 'clean up' skills than shaving and sanding down inserts like Migsula does for example. (His latest Aplharius has a great photo of the shin inserts smoothly integrated)

I tend to add the insert, then bulk out and clean up with GS. The height will be similar, and finish not unlike similar work, but the method is something I'm more sure of.

In saying all this and the recent comparison photo, I realised two things about Ardan. His modelling technique doesn't approach height via the same as the Marine. Ergo, I need to redo his shin armor for height boosting, and retain a more standard thigh length. I have remodelled this, and in a second issue, added an old school Scout belt plate..





This ends up with a more statuesque pose certainly, less energy, but I feel it works when alongside the 'modified' proportions of the new Marine piece. He will receive a codpiece and 'gear' shortly, but the predominant work is complete now.

From a modeller to those just beginning, sometimes.. you just have to accept you went the wrong way, and remodel a piece from the ground up (I pulled Ardan apart to add all the new pieces). I now sit here, more satisfied he resonates the origins of the original scout miniatures than before. Continuing, the black marker line is something I do to align piece back into a pose I like.

Malika2 : The Artwork I rendered from shots of my own BFG collection. I'm a graphics professional by background, so enjoyed messing about quickly to produce the piece for the 'story'.

n answering others, the boots are unpowered, hence the overall lack of armor as the original scouts bore no power gear at all.

~ Tael.

Old school scout belt FTW!

Looks good mate, nice use of parts and good GSing to bring them all together, looking forward to seeing him come alive with paint on him.

Also, love the severed GS arm on the base, nice touch.

Cheers,

Dante

I love your retro looking scout. It's so much more characterful that the standard scout models. are you planning on adding any of the big, ruffled sleeves to any of your scout models (Empire models might be a good source for these).

Now the scout is scaled-up he must be quite a bit taller than a standard marine model. When you come to modify your marines how much bigger than the scout do you plan to make them?

Cheers CMDante, about to finish off his Mohawk and build on some of his gear to blend it more readily. The severed arm on the base is WiP, about to savage that too and add some gore.

Hobbit; I had thought of the Empire General kit for large enough billowing arms, but I've decided to go more brawn and show some flesh. Also, ruffled cloth I figured would be one of the first things to be worn out after many running battles with the Tyranid. I think it's one point where I diverge from canon and into interpretation.

I've posted a comparison for scale on page 1, Ardan isn't much different, even after this adjustment.

~ Tael.

I saw the comparison between the first version of Ardan and the marine but was wondering about the size comparison between the new Ardan and your embiggend marines.

Hi All,

Hobbit ~ I'll upload a comparison shot in the morning, Ardan is nearly finished painting, so I will use the light to best show the results so far.

Whilst I waited on parts and worked over the components that made Ardan, I fiddled on some backpacks I had mocked up for my original Truescale marines, before I spied the work of Apologist and Migsula.

In an idea of the Scythes adding trophies to their armor I put these together as one off, singular changes to a classic marine look as I build the characters;



Tempted to go with the first, ..maybe second, the third.. hmm, WiP in retrospect.

Colour photos of Ardan tomorrow morning!

~ Tael.

Not a fan of the bigger tyranid plates on marines, just looks a bit too overdone. I think the first two backpacks look cool but not a fan of the third.

Looking forward to painted pics of Ardan.

Cheers,

Dante

Righto, digicam ISO having fun this morning..mutter.. I'll grab another camera when I'm done.

Nonetheless.. the current progress, I decided to stick to my style of painting the Scythes in the end ;




You can pick out Ardan's only remaining Scythe emblem, some of his modified Bolt rounds and the 'Big One' MeltaBomb he keeps handy. This with assorted super-krak and super-frag grenades.

Yet to finish some shading, and details. Overall, some of the subtle hues are lost in the images, such as the grey to soft black of the armor and the deeper hue to the yellow armor lines. Hopefully more easily shown by the other camera I need to get for the final shoot.

And for Hobbit, the heigh differences Scout vs Marine (incomplete)


~ Tael.

That my fellow Daakite, is beautiful, even though its a space marine it so beautiful, keep it up!!

Looking great!

I love bigified marines and your scout looks awesome, hope the marine goes that well!

I would go for the first or second back pack, or a mix, the third covering looks just wrong, but remember it's always ur choice

Looking very nice mate, I will save full comments for the final pics though as its clear there are a lot of tones and subtle hues washed out in these pics.

Cheers,

Dante

I like his proportions and your choice of colorscheme.
Like Dante, can't say anything definitive about the painting until I see the final pics.
First impressions are good though.

The flesh tones on the face look superb Tael!
I think the purple guts on the chainsword is really neat too.

I hope your Digicam sorts itself out soon, so we can get a proper look! >:0

What are the plans for the base? Can't wait to see this develop!

Thanks for the feedback guys, understandably restrained being just a In Progress shot. I've readdressed the skin tones on the arms last night and fixed a couple of 'whoops' errors. Waiting on a new camera as I type, should have images over the weekend.

As for basing? I'd like to go possibly arid terrain, with Tyranid body parts.. as if the Scythes' have ambushed a 'Seeker' hiveship on some backwater world. I was thinking a Hiveship base style, but decided against it due to competing attentions.

Also...



The reworked legs, with dual plated greaves, and double plate back plate, and a redone belt line (similar fashion to the way in which the shoulders are treated with new rims)

As you can see, there is a hairline crack on the left calf, and above that two dents, those I will smooth out after the GS is set over night. I have the torso at 75% complete.. so.. I imagine I'll be painting Sunday? Monday?

More soon!

~ Tael.

I love this thread. May the scythes live long and find the vengance they seek.

Thanks SJ

Here's an update on my first Marine, yet to be identified, with several small finishes to be done after this first 'Dry Fit'..





I'd love to pack on more kit, since with fewer marines.. more gear to go around, a comment made by a fellow Scythes enthusiast I'm bouncing ideas off with here : http://warhammer.org.uk/phpBB/viewtopic.php?f=4&t=56151

I'm being cautious with this first model, with an idea to simply produce a classic "Marine".. so boltgun to the fore, For the Emperor! (staccato muzzle flash), steady pacing. Essentially, this guy is the rifleman of the group, taking ground and laying down some close quarter's cover fire.

Modelling wise, I ever so slightly adjusted his left leg to point outwards by mere mm's. Crazy the difference that makes. For the shoulders, I'm going to build up atop the 'shoulder' mount of standard marine arms, since I found (and curious for critique here) that it seems about right in relation to his neckline. So I'm merely bulking out with the Shoulder armor.

He's a solid git alright..


best!
Tael.

These SM's are fantastic and yor paint job is outstanding, keep them coming

That is one impressive marine!

And nice to get a better look at Ardan, the painting's as excellent as I'd thought it would be. His face has so much character!

Beautiful work! The marine is especially stunning. I'm really looking forward to following this thread.

So wait...you just used a normal marine torso without modifying it?

Amazing job on the marine mate, he looks perfect! That settles it, I need to make one of these someday soon!

The pose is perfect, it makes the bog standard marine look eye-catching and almost character-like with the amount of detail and fitting expression. I can see this guy blasting nids and clearing a path already!

If you are having trouble getting perfecty smooth GS on the first go don't forget you can use milliput washes to fill any cracks or small dents. Also, milliput/GS mix is good for "smoothing" work. It's easier to water down and soft enough to be able to get flush joins.

Also, Space Crusade bayonett for the win!

Can't wait to see him painted.

P.S. - The scout looks even better in those pics, the scale of both him and the marine is perfect too.

Malika2 wrote:So wait...you just used a normal marine torso without modifying it?

I think Tael used a Terminator torso front piece with a normal SM back piece on the back, IIRC?

I like the look of your Marine, the legs especially turned out great. I see you used the same set of legs I used, but somehow it looks different? Is this because you altered the left leg?

Keep it up!

How do you make Normal Marine arms fit so well with the rest of the model? I tried it, but I thought it looked goofy? Maybe it's the bulk of the shoulder Armor?

Can we see what you did with the upper torso and arms? I am really curious how you made them blend so well...

If there is a way to use normal marine arms then my own true scale project will soar!!

Thanks,
Chappy P!

I think he moved them a bit more forward, so they are not 100% located where they should be. Not sure though, I hope Teal will be able to tell us that shortly!

This is brilliant stuff!
Like the way you've done your scout marine and the face is just excellent
Nice touch having Xenos gore on the Chain Sword, and the addition of a bit of Chitin added to his armour.

Honestly, the true beauty of the whole 'true scale' craze, is just how much detail you can get with the increase in size.

I love all of the extra kit.

The size of them both are pretty much spot on for what I would expect at this point for 'true scaled' marines. They absolutely dwarf the guard mini, and that's the whole point...

Can't wait to see some more work on this guy. And more paint on Ardan.

did you use unmodified tactical marine arms? if yes, i think that makes it even more clear how massive and tall he is compared to a non-power armoured human.
btw, could you take a picture with the tors and arms disassembled?

Absolutely fantastic mate!

I second Grey Death's comments about the beauty of increased amounts of kit. Also, that long double pocket can only really go on a True Scale marine, it's just too oversized on any other model!

Only Tael, you didn't have a nicer 40mm base to stick him on? Haha ;P