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Chemical Cutthroat wrote:For the priest it just seems like the head-bit needs to be more vertical and pointy. Make it look like it's practically standing up by itself.

The Necromancer needs a really really long fu-man-chu. Like one of those ridiculous Confucious mustaches, I think it would really start to pull the character into the theme a bit more.

No idea how to sculpt it of course.

The knights (samurai) look good so far! I'd like to see another shot of the skull guy, because the topknot looks well sculpted.

Keep it up chief!

Thanks! I'll try that out tonight (fudgecakes... more stuff to sculpt... ) I'll go at it first with some sandpaper to see if I can't shape what's already there... then maybe add some height to it?

LOL... dunno if they had fu-man-chus... but hell, might as well try that out too! I agree though, without radical changes to the structure of the mini (which I love), I think it'd be good to change the face (which I hate) to pull it more in-line and "ancient Asian".

And thanks for the compliments. I'll take a front shot of the Topknot tonight along with any other work I pull off. Tonight's schedule will be leg armor for all BK torsos, helmet for the last guy, ornaments... and possibly shoulder pads and forearm armor if I have time.

Thanks again for stopping by!

-Remi

Good morning and welcome to another progress update of Undead Samurai! After a long day at work, I got a bit of modeling into my schedule before turning my attention to school work. Here are the results of that progress.

Took a bit of time (and a scalpel) to the Necro’s hat, going on Chem Cutthroat’s suggestion to make the hat a bit taller and pointier. Cut it down, sanded it, and added a tad bit of GS for height. I’ll be sanding it down more after it hardens. Looks a bit better, but still not pushing the envelope for me, so to speak.



Also as requested by Cutthroat, a close-up of the helmetless samurai. Voila- the skellie in all his funky glory! It’s kinda hard to tell, but he does have a lower jaw, just, doing some crazy screaming-mimi face. That, and the hauberk is kinda getting in the way.



And one more, just for kicks, and because the front shot doesn’t actually show a whole lot of detail.



And finally, a group shot. Most of my time was taken up 1) making a final helmet (back) and 2) carving up a bunch of helmet ornaments and sticking them on. In case you’re wondering, one guy’s ornament is from an Epic Ork Warwagon of some sort with claws on it. You’ll notice one guy doesn’t have his yet. I plan to make his ornament a gunbai dansen, or warfan. Like so-
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Anyway, that’s it for me for now. I’ll be getting a bit more work done over the weekend. I think after I finish converting these mounted guys, I’m going to take a break and start painting up the squad and Krell.

Comments and critiques are always welcome!

-Remi

I like the crests on the Samurai, it really brings a lot to the models.

I was right the topknot sculpt looks awesome, escpecially on that skull!

Jury is still out on the necromancer. I think we all know the effect you're obviously trying to go for, it just seems to be having trouble getting translated to the model.

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:I like the crests on the Samurai, it really brings a lot to the models.

I was right the topknot sculpt looks awesome, escpecially on that skull!

Jury is still out on the necromancer. I think we all know the effect you're obviously trying to go for, it just seems to be having trouble getting translated to the model.

Thanks! I can't wait until they have the shoulder armor as well to complete the look. And yea, topknot is probably my favorite right now.

... I'll probably leave the Necro for a while- something will come to me eventually, but it's just not coming together in that mini yet. Might experiment with the fu-man-chu 'stache tonight just for kicks.

Thanks for stopping by!

-Remi

The topknot looks great Remi.

I feel the necros hat needs to be pointier still, like in the image it literally tapers to a point. A fu man chu, while not technically thematic (perhaps, i dunno really) would look freaking awesome! Plus it would drive home the japanese theme. I think paint will help too.

Vitruvian XVII wrote:The topknot looks great Remi.

I feel the necros hat needs to be pointier still, like in the image it literally tapers to a point. A fu man chu, while not technically thematic (perhaps, i dunno really) would look freaking awesome! Plus it would drive home the japanese theme. I think paint will help too.

LOL... Pointer still?? Yea, I'm thinking the 'stache is one of the only ways to get it across, along with the paint job.

I did a bit more assembly work, knights will be about 90% finished with the next update. Stay tuned!

-Remi

Welcome back to another installment. Thanks to an extended 3-day weekend, I was able to do a bit more work. I realize you might be saying, “Sweet lord, these BKs are taking for-friggin’-ever!” (at least I am)… but the cutting and modification has left more problems that I initially did not anticipate.

Here are the boys… pretty much done. One guy very nearly complete, only missing shin/forearm guards. The others are in various states of completion. But on a whole, I’d say the major work is nearly 80% complete, with the fix-up stuff around 25%.



Here’s the nearly complete guy. He might be one a few I’ll keep with this style of armor, as it’s very plain… and not quite as cool looking as the textured stuff. I say “nearly complete” as cutting off the barding from his legs has left a nasty space between him and the horse… making all the knights look like they’re hovering above the saddle.



A shot of the crosshatch scale Champion. I just realized right now they all need sheathed swords too… balls. I’ll be cutting down the edge of his armor and smoothing it out with sandpaper.



Remember how I mentioned “fix-up” stuff? I want to armor their legs as well, but the cloth draped around them obviously shows only bone. So I’m building up a bit of robe to accomodate the shin-guards they've got underneath. And covering up those nasty crevices between rider/horse while I'm at it.



I’ll be taking close-ups of the others once I finish more of their armor-

If you take a look at the first pic, I’ve given them names to distinguish them- (from the left)

Gorget - Needs arms, shoulder pads, forearm guards and shinguard leg-fixes (50% completed)
Champion – Needs one more shoulder pad and one more shinguard leg-fix (90%)
Saw Crest – Needs one more shoulder pad and both shinguard leg-fixes (70%)
Top Knot – Needs both shoulder pads and both shinguard leg-fixes (60%)
Lamellar – Needs shinguard leg-fixes (90%)

Anyways, that’s it for now. I’ll have more updates tomorrow! Comments/critiques are always welcome!

-Remi

-EDIT- And I TOTALLY lied in my previous post saying they'd be "90% complete". Not. Even. Close.

Yeah, but they still look damn good.

I can never give an estimate on when something is done, cause I'll inevitably find more stuff to do.

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:Yeah, but they still look damn good.

I can never give an estimate on when something is done, cause I'll inevitably find more stuff to do.

How very true… And now I’ve got this to look forward to for 20? 30? Skeletons? More?

I wasn’t able to get any work done yesterday, but did manage to get a bit of research done into the art of “casting”. Yes, the dark art of casting.. Fortunately, I just want to cast GS samurai armor pads and possibly sheathed-samurai-swords that I make to expedite the process into painting. No friggin’ way in hell am I making 4 pcs (shouders x 2 and leggings x 2) x 30 = 120 pads+??


Thanks for stopping by! (lol, one of two faithful followers!) More to come tonight, as I know for certain I'm getting out of work on-time!

-Remi

Thanks for stopping by! (lol, one of two faithful followers!)

You do good work! So I always look forward to updates.

Besides, I know how important motivation can be, and it's always nice to know someone has their eye on your work.

And I can always be holding our for that Garrus conversion eh'?

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:

Thanks for stopping by! (lol, one of two faithful followers!)

You do good work! So I always look forward to updates.

Besides, I know how important motivation can be, and it's always nice to know someone has their eye on your work.

And I can always be holding our for that Garrus conversion eh'?

True again! LOL... fine, fine. I'll up the ME3 killteam on the list from "N7" to "Priority" status. It'll be something like this for a schedule-

Finish Mounted Samurai
Start painting on Krell
Start painting on Mounted Samurai
(probably get bored of painting in between and start work on Garrus conversion)

To start, I'll need to consider which version I want to do- definitely not ME1 with all the different "generic" armors, ME2 is a nice possibility as it's iconic, or ME3 (default, as much as I love his guerilla fighter alternate constume).

...Heavy conversion using Tau parts (upper body, shoulder pads, leg pads and leg form) with extensive GS work plus gs'd kroot head, custom weapon with brass tube/plasticard/gs

...I'll have to check the infinity line to see if they have any minis I can modify with any success. The problem will be the turian legs. They're bent back, but not so much so, plus little spikey knee-thingy bits. All covered in armor. And next biggest is the fact that Infinity minis are all metal... which I'm not as fond of in terms of chopping apart.

Alternately, I can start with Commander Shepard (canon dude), and need to find the most handsomest (preferably bald) head I can from any model lines out there.

-Remi

I'd just rock him with the helmet and cheat horribly.

I think you could look at a lot of the Combined Army models for Infinity, since they have some weird-legged aliens that aren't too oddball. The problem with those is they tend to be a hair smaller in proportion than the 40K models, so a Kroot head might look ridiculously out of place.

It might be a better bet just to browse through some of the more random model lines in the hopes of stumbling over something perfect for conversion, but those are even more likely to all be metal, which I know is a pain to modify.

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:I'd just rock him with the helmet and cheat horribly.

I think you could look at a lot of the Combined Army models for Infinity, since they have some weird-legged aliens that aren't too oddball. The problem with those is they tend to be a hair smaller in proportion than the 40K models, so a Kroot head might look ridiculously out of place.

It might be a better bet just to browse through some of the more random model lines in the hopes of stumbling over something perfect for conversion, but those are even more likely to all be metal, which I know is a pain to modify.

LOL... yea, I've gotta do him without the helmet and the messed-up face. I'll be researching this inbetween my other projects... more coming soon. But for now, another update!

I’m pleased to say I actually finished three of the five knights yesterday night! (and this is a lie, because they still need swords at their sides… ) In addition, I finished all the GS to cover the spaces between the horses and their legs. Not too shabby! Without further ado, the finished guys-

Sawcrest- gave him both textured shoulders and leggings, and he’s keeping his Western-style breastplate with the three-fork icon



Champion- he’ll probably be one of the few with the funky scale armor, as 1) it’s kinda hard to make and 2) the end result isn’t quite “samurai” in my eyes. But pleased he’s done!



Lamellar- This guy I was pleased with as he does look like a samurai, but his armor is a bit plain. I’ll be doing some texture work with the paint (scratches and such) to add detail to his flat-surface plating.



And as a sneak peek, I’ve got a single shoulderpad and leggings (possibly gloves?) to finish on Topknot before he’s finished. Definitely my favorite of the group.



I’m also thinking of adding the samurai face-masks to one or two of these guys… something like this…


Thanks for stopping by! Comments and critiques are always welcome! There’ll probably be one or two more updates before I start painting these guys!

-Remi

Yeah, I really like the nice, flat bits of armor. They fit perfectly, look easier to sculpt, and look perfect for the theme. Texture be damned, a bit of chipped up laquer and those would looke perfectly in theme.

I can't wait to see them once they get all primered up and everything. Once you get that first coating on and it blends everything together it really makes the GS work stand out.

Im a faithful follower! Lol. Shame i can barely access the net these days

Theyre looking great. Youve finally sort of finished one! Congrats.

One of those oni type masks would look sweet. You given any thought into including any japanese mythological spirits?

On the subject of casting, do it! If you cant be bothered to fully go resin casting, grab some instant mold or something like that, those kinda armour plates would take well to press moulding.

On a side note, youve inspired me to bust out the GS and sculpt for the first time in ages. The end product may or may not fit with this project and may or may not accidentally fall into a box labelled with your address.......

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:Yeah, I really like the nice, flat bits of armor. They fit perfectly, look easier to sculpt, and look perfect for the theme. Texture be damned, a bit of chipped up laquer and those would looke perfectly in theme.

Thanks! I like it as well, but I'm more partial to Krell/the other two mounted guy's armor with the detailed bitz. Either way, I'll have a good variation going for everyone.

Vitruvian XVII wrote:Im a faithful follower! Lol. Shame i can barely access the net these days

On a side note, youve inspired me to bust out the GS and sculpt for the first time in ages. The end product may or may not fit with this project and may or may not accidentally fall into a box labelled with your address.......

LOL, yes! Yes you are! One of two! I suppose Jesus started in a way much like this, although I'm far from that particular religious figure.

And WHOA!! You gonna make me something?? Ahaha ha ha! Lookin' forward to whatever might fall into the box along with the order.

Vitruvian XVII wrote:One of those oni type masks would look sweet. You given any thought into including any japanese mythological spirits?

That's a very good question, actually. And yes, I have. When I first thought about doing this, I had several ideas for the units to make them "fit in" a bit better. I made a theme-file of ideas and brainstorms to further play with. Here are a few of the ideas.

Dire Wolves


Vargheists


Spirit Hosts - using the zombie bits I'm taking off your hands. (the kuchisake-onna (slit-mouth woman) might be my banshee, if I don't end up making her the plate-breaking servant girl ghost...






Something like that. And then the link you uploaded got me thinking Hexwraiths into Warrior Monks w/ naginatas. But yes, like we spoke about over PM, I'm taking 40K Fenrisian wolves to turn them into 9-tail wolves, possibly with a brighter aqua or tangerine-creme color scheme as "ghost wolves" counts as Dire Wolves for the next unit after 10-15 skellies.

-Remi

Yeah, its been kinda fun sculpting from scratch again! Ive always wanted to do a Nippon army so its been a welcome distraction from revision!

They all look pretty damn cool, cant wait to see how the 'ninetails' turn out.

Vitruvian XVII wrote:Yeah, its been kinda fun sculpting from scratch again! Ive always wanted to do a Nippon army so its been a welcome distraction from revision!

They all look pretty damn cool, cant wait to see how the 'ninetails' turn out.

You've piqued my interest... I'm wondering what it is you could be sculpting...? Wanna add WIP pics to this blog for me to drool over?? (and totally blow my crap out of the water?) And sculpting from scratch... not a conversion, a complete GS sculpture?

And yes, I've dreamt about making a samurai army for a very long time... it started with Empire troops... (seriously, I'll bust out old plastics from 10 years ago with my "test" armor, never got to assembling them fully though- pics when I get back to my parents' house in the burbs)

In terms of my own progress, not too much to report. Pleased to say I finally finished a strip of GS I bought maybe 2.5 years ago? Started with a freshly bought batch from GW and it was very... soft. I used it to make more foot/shin guards and fill in the shoulder-arm areas for a few of the samurai, as I glued them at "off" angles without cutting them apart and reforming the arm to make it look like they're holding the reins of their horses instead of holding a shield.

Nine-tail wolves will be coming next month. I stopped by a FLGS on the way back to the office from a business trip to pick up some plasticard to chop for head ornaments and feet-raising (so they don't "sink" into the snow and basing"), plus some rectangular-rod to cut/bend/melt into sheathed swords for nearly all of the incoming troops. More progress tonight.

-Remi

Alright i guess a sneaky wip cant hurt...

First is just a random samurai skelly i messed around with, the second is a kabuki vamp

Vitruvian XVII wrote:Alright i guess a sneaky wip cant hurt...

First is just a random samurai skelly i messed around with, the second is a kabuki vamp

Spoiler:

Friggin' awesome!

You plan to outdo my "standard" formula for skellies- they weren't supposed to have much clothing, so erm... if/when that guy arrives at my doorstep, I'll be making him a champion!

And as for the vampire- very interesting! I'm looking forward to what you're planning on using for the head.. the rest of it looks really good: the solid lines of the kimono and the sleeves.

Thanks again! That pesky thing called school (and Mass Effect) got in the way during the weekend- I'll be doing more modelling and hopefully primer/paint work tonight.

-Remi

Great Stuff... looking forward to more updates from you

Regnak wrote:Great Stuff... looking forward to more updates from you

Thanks, Regnak! Here's the newest from the phantom forge!

As the title update states- these figs are FINISHED! I'm waiting for the primer to dry out completely and set before painting them as we speak (er, as I write?).

These guys are done! Finished Gorget's shoulder pads, and also added GS to the backs o the saddles to make the transition more seamless between the figures' components.


Then I figured they needed weapons if their lances broke (preferably on their enemies)- so I made a trip to my FLGS to get some plasticard. Shaped, and added a bit of GS on the ends and mid-edges to get a handguard for each. Yes, I realize they are a bit "thicker"... no, I'm not going to do them over.



Close-up of the blade. Every handle-butt and sheath-end have different patterns of holes. And there are a few variations on the tsuba/handguards.



And in addition, did a bit of work on the Necro... LOL... managed to put a fu-man-chu on this guy... and he looks even MORE ridiculous... Be honest, he looks like Gandalf, doesn't he...


And just to finish it off, I made his hat even TALLER.


That's it for this update. I'm going to start painting Krell and the knights. And that's it for this d-bag necromancer. I'm going to rely on the paint to convey my ideas. If he blows, he won't be making the family photo a year down the road. Comments and critiques are always welcome- helps me improve what I do!

-Remi

Haha that fu man chu is awesome. Honestly think it makes him look more oriental

How about some eyebrow strands as well? I love those old dudes in kung fu films with eyebrows as long as beards

The knights look ace man, really well done. Cant wait to see em with paint.

As for paint schemes, this is pretty cool:




And found this awesome image too

Well the paint is what I'm waiting for!

The swords were a good call, even if they are a little thick.

I think the creepy necromancer looks alright. I think the facial hair is a good touch, but I guess we'll have to see if he eventually looks like your inspiration.

Vitruvian XVII wrote:Haha that fu man chu is awesome. Honestly think it makes him look more oriental

How about some eyebrow strands as well? I love those old dudes in kung fu films with eyebrows as long as beards

The knights look ace man, really well done. Cant wait to see em with paint.

As for paint schemes, this is pretty cool:

Spoiler:

And found this awesome image too

Spoiler:

Thanks, Vit! Appreciate it. I've decided to do my original- black, purple/blue, gold accents. Looks kinda like the 2nd picture... feels good to get back into the saddle and paint again...

Chem Cutthroat wrote:Well the paint is what I'm waiting for!

The swords were a good call, even if they are a little thick.

I think the creepy necromancer looks alright. I think the facial hair is a good touch, but I guess we'll have to see if he eventually looks like your inspiration.

LOL... thanks. I still look at him and think of this guy...


YOU SHALL NOT PASS!!

I'll probably add superlong eyebrows to Necro-Gandalf, just to complete his ridiculous look.

As to progress, I did start airbrushing some black onto the armor and horse-blankets. Did the base of one guy minus static grass and snow and took pics. However, I won't be able to put them up til this Thursday. Heading out to FL and AZ on business... ugh...

Anywho, stay tuned, and I'll get back to blogging progress as soon as I can!

-Remi

Hey Remi, saw this and thought of you.

http://www.brother-vinni.com/gallery/28mm/m28sold01.htm

It's not Garrus, but it's my favorite model on the Citadel...

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:Hey Remi, saw this and thought of you.

http://www.brother-vinni.com/gallery/28mm/m28sold01.htm

Awesome! That not-Shepard model carrying a not-Avenger... It looks like a great choice! I'm not too fond of the head though- a bit too brutish, and not Sheploo enough. To be fair though, my shep is a custom code to look like Andy "Rain-Bringer" Whitfield, God rest his soul.

Chemical Cutthroat wrote:

It's not Garrus, but it's my favorite model on the Citadel...

LOL

As for myself, I got back from a grueling race from FL to AZ... one 19-hour day in there, early departures... yea, suffice to say I was not in the mood to paint when I came home yesterday. I'll have updates this weekend after school!

-Remi

... on hiatus.. surprise surprise... Last update was mid-April, but classes got in the way yet again.

Actually, no. This is legit. VitruvianXVII and I are working on an =][= Munda campaign to be made available for public consumption on our duo-blog, Shadows Over Vanaheim. My FINAL MBA classes are not as difficult, providing me with a rigid schedule and definite time to collaborate/paint/model.

Stay tuned (over there), as I'll be presenting most of my work on our newly made site! Thanks again. I'll be back here if I've got something non-=][= related, but for now, focusing on the summer project!

Check us out- http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/455099.page

-Remi