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Oooh, that looks interesting... can't wait to see what you do!

You've totally inspired me to try something in this build style. Your work is extraordinary.

Amazing! Just went through this thread on the edge of my seat

Thanks guys!

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It's been a while. I've been really busy with "real-life" responsibilities, but I do have some exciting updates.

I've been working a lot on the Necromunda terrain, and am aiming to have a few big pieces completed in the next month or so. Pictures soon. The Volt Oxides, my tech gang, have managed to do pretty terribly so far in the campaign (4 losses, no wins!) but are starting to rack up lots of advances to due to under-dog experience bonuses. My leader now has a WS of 6 so I may switch models and use this brute as the leader:



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I'm also thrilled to announce I've joined Ex Profundis!

I'll be posting various projects and articles over there, and I'm honored to have my Navigators be featured alongside such wonderful models. I think it's a great fit with my views on the setting and hobby and I'm excited about the possibilities. Stay tuned!

In the meantime, here are some out-takes from my first post at Ex Profundis, a showcase of the newest completed members of my household, two new(er) Navigators and some of their bizarre attendants. You've seen these models at various points before (but for the most part before they were completed) but this is the first time I've really managed to photograph them in a way that captures all the details.











Check out Ex Profundis for lots more photos and background (and a Beaconite Lodge Warrior!).

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I've got a few other things half-started but most of it isn't ready to share yet. Mostly I've been having fun exploring uses for the amazing Deathwatch GS hybrid models. Great off-the-rack, but like the Skitarrii before, wonderful material for conversion. It's been a while since I made a simple henchman, and it's always important to contrast the outlandish freaks with more grounded models, so here's the start of a simple kitbash. I've been wanting to use that upside-down space marine torso for a while. Not sure how he'll end up but I'm currently considering a leopard cloak and either a shield or battering ram arm ...



Finally, I've been drawing more lately. Theoretically this is a way to explore ideas when I don't have time to sit down with models, but more often than not it just gives me ideas for more models to build instead of getting it out my system. Here's a doodle that turned into a youthful Navigator :

Cool start with the deathwatch minis, looking forward to see what you do with them all.

EDC

It's great to see those models completed, and I'm excited for what's coming on Ex Profundis.

I absolutely love the new cultist models. I wish GW would make a proper, multi-pose plastic kit for generic cultists that could be used for multiple armies.

I can't wait to see what you do with them!

Sweet Emperor, this is beautiful!
Truly artistic and creative bizarre content. Subbed and exalted!

Thanks so much!

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I'm almost done with the hive tower. Basically just need to add some rivets and textures using my standard mix of gesso, baking soda, coffee grounds, and plastic trimmings.





I had a lot of fun adding platforms and ladders, thinking about how this will work as an actual game piece. Lots of potential for fire-fights around corners, and tactical decisions about which paths to take.

I love that random stick you've got going all the way up one side there and out the top. It also looks like some fun terrain to play over, I remember that Necromunda was always great to play, mainly due to the terrain, especially when characters accidentally fell off.

Thanks! I've already had my share of models fall and receive serious injuries, so have actually included a railing or two on the tower

I added some texture last night and documented the process:



I've been using combinations of coffee grounds, baking soda, and the plastic trimmings I save from when I clean off my cutting boards. I do a lot of fine trimming and shaving of bits so I tend to have a lot of trimmings saved up.

I've been trying different ways of applying the texture and last night I started by dabbing white glue in areas where it would make sense for detritus to collect, thinking vaguely about underhive weather including not only dust-storms and acid rain but junk-hail and scrap-deluges. So in this case mostly on horizontal surfaces, unevenly distributed:





And on a simple industrial style walk-way I made out of left-over illustration board:



Then I mixed up a slurry of gesso, white glue, coffee grounds, and baking soda (normally I include matte medium instead of glue but I couldn't get the bottle open and gave up):



And then applied this heavily on the lower parts of the tower and the undersides of platforms:





And then finally I used a piece of spongey foam to dab it around everywhere to try to tie the different textures together.



In the past I've used more baking soda in the mix which makes the paste puff up and expand, and then shrink down when it dries, causing a very cool rusty texture that looks a lot like a coral reef. But for this terrain I wanted things to be a bit less corroded so used less baking soda and tried to keep some surfaces clean. It's very tempting to cover everything in sludge! Now to see how this will look when primed ...

Prime it now!

fantastic build. this is going to look the bomb when all finished and painted up in that unique weirding way

This hive tower is a pure work of art, excited to see how it turns out once painted up....

Thanks for sharing your texturing process. Coffee grounds and baking soda, eh? That's a very interesting idea. I do have a coffee grinder with variable grind... hmm, opportunities.

Looks fantastic already.

EDC

Awesome! Truly. Fantastic stuff. Thanks for sharing your gunk slurry method, got a ruined factory coming up that will appreciate it!

We're not worthy!

That plastic trimmings idea is genius, I'm gonna have to start doing that!

Tower looks really amazing, very awating for color version!

I know it's been a while since the last post but I had to comment on this thread. I hadn't really visited this thread in a few years but I just went through every page since my last post and wow. This army is inspirational. You've captured that perfect blend of Gothic surrealism and early science fiction in a brilliant combination of creepy, whimsical wonder. The conversions are top notch and every single character has a ton of...well, character!

I would really like to know where this army has gone since your last post! I certainly hope you haven't abandoned it, because I really want to see more stuff!

Seconded, and thirded, and however many times is socially acceptable to recommend something

This is one of the armies that drew me back to 40k and I owe it a debt of gratitude! Such an awesome army in concept and execution

Would also love to hear what's going on hopefully there's more!

Thanks so much guys! I've been lax in updating this blog — i've been posted more over at the ammobunker inq28 section, with the occasional post at Ex Profundis.

First off, some in-battle shots of the hive tower from a game a few months ago. Very quickly painted for that game and I really need to go back and finish it off.





My big project since the last update here was a warband from a new Navigator house that I built for an Inquisimunda game in california, The Curse of the Alabaster. You can see more about that at The Ammobunker.

Here are some casualties from my gang with a lovely game card put together by the game's host, Shibboleth, featuring a John Blanche illustration.


And the warband's leader, Navimancer Thanerrat Akuhm.


More detailed pics to come soon!

I also built a huge terrain piece, a crashed chunk of a cursed ship, fused into a hive worlds depths:




(I added more weathering and shading after those photos. I'll have to post better shots of the finished ship.
Lately I've started a few new Navigator household models. A new sculpted navigator head:



And a combat drone and handler:

I have seen a lot of your posts on FB and have to say you really have inspired me to do my own builds, that and collect every empty container bottle lid in the house hold lol

Anyway great to see you back with your strange and twisted creativity as always nice to see you push the boundaries of our minds.

Your mad skills never cease to terrify. Wait, I mean impress.

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Also terrify

Awesome as always. Here I am, jealous of your trimmings. I should trim more stuff. : )


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And have I mentioned that I really like the overall color "feel" you get with your painting style? Reminds me of some of my favorite sci-fi old school oil paintings. (But not Blanche, actually - better).

Crashed ship is first class, so impressed whenever you post updates

Loving the subtle conversion on the handler's arms/gun. I think I have all the components to build the legs of your drone too, I might see if I can reverse engineer my own!

Wow! That crashed spaceship almost warrants a thread of its own, and you seemingly just threw it together?

The drone and especially the handler look great. Only question is if the drone isn´t a bit lightly armed?

More pics of the tower and spaceship please

Love this thread! That crashed spaceship is just bonkers, well done sir!

EDC