Opinions on this warrior->tyrant guard conversion

[fallenstard]

(See reply below for the redo's) I have 3 2nd edition Tyranid Warriors, and am pretty settled on not using them. If I don't use them, my alternate army build calls for 2 tyrant guards, which I don't own and don't want to buy, if possible, until I know I reallyw ant to get back into the game. So I figured I try turning my warriors into guards for now, and wanted to know what others think of the results. They're not spectacular, but I think they'll get me by. If you think the outcome is no good, and people won't recognize them as guards, please tell me so I can drop the idea before working on the second one.

The model is:
1 2nd ed tyranid warrior's body, legs, rending claws, and head (clipped and glued to stick forward from the neck instead of resting on top like a human skull)
2 2nd ed carnifex scything talons
Air-dry modeling putty, molded into several overlapping chitin plates

The paint job is neither good nor complete right now, but I don't have time to finish it tonight.

Oh! And in the background is the tyrant he'll be guarding (Also not 100% painted). I plan to field this guard on the tyrant's left side, sort of facing in and angled up on his right leg.








One last thing, does anyone know the exact dimensions of the MC bases? I've only got the old square ones and need to replace them.

[Overread]

I like the idea - I remember those old tails - more scary than our current ones - I think I have one or two of the old warriors around here somewhere - - gets an idea -- er don't mind that, me just talking out loud.

anyway I like the idea, but I think your green stuff skills need a little working on.
have you read the guide for modelling in the konversions clinic on the GW website (I would link, but my connection won't let me in the site at the moment_

[Pheonix]

i actually like the concept. warrior bodies ROCK!

[fallenstard]

I don't have greenstuff, I'm working with air-dry clay because it's much cheaper. I know I need to work on my greenstuff skills, but it also may be that this material just isn't good for things smaller than 2-3cm and/or thin things. I made a whole body to attach the old fex talons to, as legs, with the old zoan head and it came out really nice, but when I try to do these little plates, the material dries a little before I can fully work it and it cracks, or it's too flimsy to work details into.

I'll check out the clinic, thanks for recommending it. Maybe it will help with this. (Also, I haven't even tried filling in the spaces between the talons and the body yet, I wanted to see if it was worth using this at all, first.)

[Biotitan]

looks good
also the MC base is a 60mm circle

[fallenstard]

Ok, I redid the original one, and I finished the second one (but he still needs putty to fill out the arm sockets' spaces). The new versions came out much better than the original. For the second one, I used an extra 2nd ed tyrant's head (it's the orange-taloned one).







Opinions on these ones? Are they better than the first tries/good enough to field without embarassment?

[Overread]

I definatly see a lot of improvment there - well done!
I really like the new look to them - and yes I think you can ceratinly field them without embarassment!

and on the subject of redoing -I have redone the same coversion (Adding fur to a model) I don't know how many times - I just can't get it to look right - oneday I shall!

[WestRider]

Yep, those are definitely usable. They look more like the 3rd Ed Tyrant Guards than the current ones, actually. Nice work!

[Tauranid]

Yeah, looks cool! I think I'd buy one if GW sold em!

[wormwood]

If you have a dremel and a decent assortment of bits, super glue and baking soda is a cheap alternative to modeling putties. You dab on the glue, dust it with the powder and it creates a tough plastic like composite which can be carved, filed and ground into shape. It cures instantly, and can be built up with successive applications. I use it for most of my conversions. Uncorrugated cardboard can be fashioned into carapace plates really easily too, and stiffened with super glue.

[fallenstard]

Wow, thanks everyone. I didn't think they'd turned out that well. Thanks for the encouragement on it. Wormwood, thanks for the recomendation, I may give that a try but it sounds tedious to keep layering that much superglue and baking soda on--and my dremel's back home, so I'd have to lug it back with me after break. The carboard idea is something I can definitely use, though, thank you. *Wanders off to sleep and dream of lurking*

[wormwood]

Actually the baking soda and glue builds up really fast, and the instant curing makes it much faster than greenstuffing, but without having a dremel handy I wouldn't recommend trying it.

The composite it forms is harder than the current GW plastic, and makes really sturdy joints. I've made a third edition tyrant model that stands on one foot without being pinned to the base, and it's sturdy enough that it's survived falling over with no apparent damage.

If you use baking soda on the joints of your models, don't expect to be able to disassemble them without destroying the plastic.