Corsairs, Exodites, Craftworlders and hopefully Kabalites soon

Static grass finally arrived!



The twisted herald moved its head ponderously side-to-side as it surveyed the ruined battlefield ahead, its tattered antlers lending inertia to its movements. Ragged were its breaths as it tasted the metallic tang of blood in the air. Its interest piqued by a scent lingering in the air it strode languidly through the corpses. Despite its mutations, it had lost none of the grace with which the Eldar are blessed. A characteristic thrown into sharp relief by the discordant metallic scrape of its blade dragging across the flagstones.

Reaching its quarry, it unfurled an elongated forearm towards the wounded Guardian below, caressing its spattered cheek. "You are not long for this world," the herald spoke, it's voice a deathbed whisper, so hoarse it was barely audible. "This need not be the end, my child. Come. Be with Mother Isha. She waits for you."




First attempt at weathering what do you think? I tried for a sort of osteoporosis style gradual decay of his wraithbone armour.

Heorulf, Astartes of the Death Guard is done too



Part of the background for him is that he's a first generation Terran-born Marine. As the Dusk Raiders were initially recruited from 'the warlike clans of Old Albia', so I figured it'd be fitting to give him an Anglo-Saxon name



I am slightly regretting doing the tentacles in red rather than green. I've done enough red on my other models, and green just feels more Nurgly. Too scared to do it though as with the thick gloss layer I'd probably lose all the detail repainting. Does the red look out of place?




The other thing I tried to do was paint his armour in the same scheme as the pre-Heresy Death Guard, but all beaten up, decayed and mutated. It never quite made sense to me for the Traitor Legions to flee to the eye, and then decide to spend their first days lovingly repainting their armour. Especially the Death Guard. Have a similar idea for a World Eater working on the bit of fluff that they never repainted their armour, they just haven't cleaned off the layers of dried blood



Lastly, I've got a bit of headcanon that the Chaos Gods didn't really just pop into existence in the form they are now. More that they were pre-existing unaligned or benevolent warp deities who were warped and twisted by the horrors and suffering unleashed during the descent of the 40k universe from 'tolerable' to 'grimdark'.

I reckon Nurgle began life as a fertility god. A god of the harvest. A god of the spring solstice and renewal following winter. Over the millennia, the horrific acts of the races of the early history of the 40k galaxy twisted him into the plagued nightmare he is today. However, little hints still show through of his origins. Wherever he touches the materium, life blossoms. Sure it's horrific and diseased, but it's life nonetheless. That's why the Blightdar have got little wells of foetid water welling up from beneath their feet, and the grass where that water touches is beginning to green again.

As part of a wider plot point, the desert worlds of Selesti where all of my Eldar (and my Knight Worlders and other dudes) are situated used to be verdant worlds. They were invaded by Nurgle and their ecologies irrevocably changed by his presence. Nurgle was eventually driven from the sector after much bloodshed, leaving desert worlds where life barely clung onto existence in his wake. However, the point being that it wasn't Nurgle's presence that caused the ecological collapse, but his absence. He's a fertility god. By driving him away, the lands fell into barren desert.

Little musings to keep me amused at work at any rate shot of the two together for anyone who made it through that particular ramble!

Another update finished two more Croneworlders. The claw daemonette cultist:



And the Croneweaver from ages ago



I've tried to make the Croneweaver's robes look grubby and tattered as the fluff for them is that they were the priests and priestesses of Morai Heg, and are kept alive and forced to serve Slaanesh as a sort of cruel joke. I've got two options for that actually, but not sure which to go for. Which of these two ideas do people think's better?

1. The Priests of Morai-Heg are kept as playthings of Slaanesh as a taunt that for all of her wisdom Morai-Heg couldn't see Slaanesh coming.
2. The Priests of Morai-Heg did see Slaanesh coming, but thought she was going to be their saviour. Eldar God born during their longest period of peace and prosperity, prophesised to kill Khaine who had sparked a war by trying to genocide the Eldar? What's not to like? So, they actively worked to blind their God by feeding her false prophesies, fearful of her interference as she was Khaine's consort. As Slaanesh was born and the true horror of her nature was discovered, the Croneseers tried in vain to undo their work, for which Slaanesh has condemned them to live eternally in her service.

Perhaps both why not?

Either way, they've been cursed with hunched and wisened frames, and drab, dirty vestments. An insult for such a proud and vain race as the Eldar.

And here's the pleasure cult as it stands now 6 models strong. Slaanesh's sacred number

Lovely work!

I think you're right to question the red on the plaguemarine. I would take it into purple/magenta/pink territory, but making it a bit more orange/yellow would also be good, or even reducing the chroma (grey it out a bit). Alternatively, you could balance the composition out a bit with moar red in the lower part of the miniature: the Nurgle glyph in front of the chainmail or the decorative head both seem like good places for it.

Damn I go away for awhile and you knock out all this great stuff!

Loving the crone world stuff, and the nurgle eldar are shaping up really well. I like the thin emaciated look to them alot. Your fluff pieces that accompany your works are really good. They set the scene and fill out your vision for the models so well. Bravo!

As the the red tentacles, I would echo Calyptras comment. They are too red and vibrant, and make him look cartoony, where the effect should be more muted and lifelike in my opinion

Thanks a ton guys!

Yeah i think you're absolutely right about the tentacles being too bright. Would work on another model, possibly khornate, with a base palette of dark metals and red, but not on this guy. I'll clip them off, strip them and repaint i think

I was thinking of doing them in fleshtones actually, with some gloss to make them glisten. I've found that tentacles and weird mutated bits look extra creepy when there's that extra bit of connection that they were once just regular body parts

Oh, i thought it'd be good to share the piece of artwork that inspired all of the croneworld guys alas i don't know who did it, but whoever you are thanks!



Hopefully i've done it justice

Oh, one other thing stripped back and repainted the tentacles on my Death Guard. Much prefer them now, even if they're slightly less visually impressive






I've got the recipe for the red tentacles in the bank for later though Wild Rider Red with heavy washes of Reikland Fleshshade and Druchii Violet followed by a gloss coat

Love the tentacles!

Hen Tai, the tentacle guy wrote:

Love the tentacles!

quelle surprise

The new color does look a lot more natural. If such a word can be used about an abomination from the plane of unreality.

Haha! Figures

Yeah I'm definitely pleased with the change I like my models looking as natural as possible colour-wise. Helps both blend in and jar against the gribbly mutations

That is not dead which can eternal lie. And with these strange aeons even death may die. - Khalfhirin, Prophet of Ynnead



One of the effects Revenant Psykers of the Ynnari have is to rouse the spirits of the dead to a state of near-consciousness in their presence, as opposed to the sort of half-life they normally inhabit inside the Infinity Circuit. Here's a question though. What happens when you bring a soul back to near consciousness that's been interred into the shell of a Wraithguard? The first revelation would be that you discover that you are dead. Prior to this, you absent-mindedly wander through the swirling echoes of soulstuff, unable to differentiate the living from the dead. The second revelation would be that you discover you've been interred into what amounts to a mute sensory deprivation tank and used as a tool in the the most bloody and vicious conflicts your living kin have fought.

Consciousness inside a walking tomb is not a blessing, it's a curse.




However, such consciousness once gained is not lightly given up. Many Wraithguard abandon their stations upon Craftworlds to follow Ynnari prophets, desperate to avoid slipping back into the fog of their half-life. Such companions are highly prized by the prophets of the Dead God, having a marked impact on those they wish to convert. Many are festooned with charms and scrawled messages, believed to be carried to deceased loved ones by the wakeful Wraith.



And the Ynnari Cult as it stands at the moment



Next up, some fanatics!

Sometimes, I find a good way to look for inspiration is to work out what precisely what something isn't, in addition to what it is. Ynnead is the Eldar God of Death and Rebirth. Ynnead is not God of Healing. That's Isha's domain, who still lingers on in Nurgle's company.

Ynnead has power of life and death over the bodies of the Eldar, independent of their condition. We see this in the Altansari, saved from death by the power of Ynnead, but appearing as perfectly preserved corpses. Perhaps in time she will gain power over this, but for now she is weak. A small fish in a pond full of sharks. For now, simple animation will have to suffice. Hence the term 'Revenant Psyker'. What precisely do you think these Eldar should look like?



Slain by the blinding psychic light of a fell Sorceror, Ynnead has the power to restore life to your limbs. However, Ynnead does not have the power to restore sight to your eyes.





For Laeril, wraithsight would have to suffice. The alternative, she supposed, would be unimaginably worse.

A voice echoed out through the derelict palace, deep and thunderous in its rage. "Abomination, you call me. Perversion of nature. Soul Drinker. Tell me, voidfarer, how does what I do differ from your beloved Phoenix Lords? Their art is not so different to my own. The absorpsion of souls is in our very nature. We are but vessels constructed to contain its energy. Learn to control its flow, and you too can take from those who do not deserve life. You and I are different only in our habits, not in our nature. Despise me if you will, but remember, Selesti stands due to my will alone."



Not sure if it's actually noticeable in the slightest but I've had a crack at a bit of weathering on him dirt on the hems of cloth, a little of the same on his wraithbone limbs, some stippling on his blade and a little extra highlight on his feathered ruff. Probably more noticeable from behind:




Oh, and realised I'd forgotten to give his eyes whites!

That's some awesome yo got goin' there Ynneadwraith!
Just keep doin' what you're doin'!

Thanks man! Glad you like them

Well, if you insist I'll just have to carry on!

Fascinating ideas and I like the restricted palette. The Lovecraftian element adds an interesting angle.

That looks really nice!

Thanks guys! Yeah I felt like the Eldar were missing out somewhat on the Lovecraft scale so thought Ynnead was the perfect way in

Well it's been a while but man you've done some great work! Your cult is getting better and better every time I see them, and your Croneworlders look astounding (Looking forward to the red if you put it on them, it'll really make them pop with either tattoos or blood splatter)

Thanks dude! Always glad when you drop by

I keep meaning to add some tattoos to the Croneworlders (but probably Screamer Pink), but I've got so much else to paint that'll probably have to wait for its turn in the rotation plus, I'll get some freehand practice in on something else before heading to the those guys as I wouldn't want to muck them up :S

Thanks man it's always fun to check out what you have.

If you need any designs I reccomend looking at Illidan or Wow Demon Hunters if you want some full torso patterns (they look pretty good), as for the colour I think Blood for the Blood God would actually look really cool as it would pop brightly on these guys who are mostly the pale purple you having going on and I don't know why!

So whats next on the painting list for ya?

Thanks dude!

You know, I'm starting to come around to a deep red for tattoos normally I'm very leery of using contrasting colours on my models as I tend to go for a strong low-contrast palette, but for these guys I might step out of the box a little plus, it'll help tie them into every other model I've made

The idea behind that is tying them in is that they're all in the same region of space, and with Chaos (and perhaps with other psychically attuned races) particular regions of space warp their appearance towards certain things depending on how long they've been there. For my uniformly-desert planets, that warping means everything gravitates towards shades of brown and red. The Chaos forces are warping it back somewhat (green brackish water bubbling up around the feet of the Nurgle dudes, and purple staining for the Slaaneshi ones), but it could be that they're being warped back in return...

Well, I've been sitting on this dude for a while as I couldn't quite work out whether I liked the head I'd chosen or not. To the point that I wasn't really doing anything with him so I thought 'sod it, good enough' so here he is

Behold! Baharroth, The Cry of the Wind, The Winged Phoenix. Finest of the Asurya. 'Truescaled', so to speak






Now, the question is. How to paint him? Really, I lean pretty solidly towards Craftworld colours for Aspects, and don't wholly agree with the idea of named characters anyway. However, Phoenix Lords are jsut damn cool, and my favourite model ever when I was younger was Baharroth, so it had to be done

Does he look recognisably Baharroth to get away with a Craftworld colout scheme? Or does anyone have any ideas for making Baharroth's scheme a little more gritty?

Of all those who travel the skeins of the webway, it is us outcasts, us vagrants, who most frequently plumb its depths. My kin seek to exploit it like a tool. The Dark Kin seek to control it like an animal. The Harlequins seek to hide within it like a maze. We, however, seek only to explore. - Ilgaith who Wanders



As you well know, the rift that bisects our galaxy has breached many gates, allowing She Who Thirsts to seep into our realm. However, that same breach has opened doors long thought sealed. I have braved the predators that stalk these forgotten passageways. Through broken portals, I have glimpsed views not seen since the Fall. There are Eldar there, I am sure of it. What do your runes say, Seer? Even my untrained mind can see these places are heavy with fate.



Ilgaith who Wanders? Hah! Is that what he's calling himself. We know him as Ilgaith the Deserter. Tell me, why do you trust his word?



Why did I desert? I'll tell you why. They didn't even give me a name. 'Warborn', is what they called me. One of thousands upon thousands, dragged from the vats of Commorragh, dressed in the uniform of Craftworld life and thrown into the meat-grinder of their pointless wars. I gave myself my name the day I deserted. Do you know what Ilgaith means? No longer faceless...

Gorgeous conversions, the result is really natural and yet unconventionnal.

I really love the subtile fall tints all around your miniatures *-*

Thanks dude glad you like them!

Yeah the sort of autumnal scheme started as an idea to make all my various allied forces look different but still cohesive on the battlefield, but seeing as I've yet to play a game I've decided that they're all in the same part of the universe. A sector ravaged by Nurgle, and left as a Scar of barren desert worlds stretching across the area.

Struggling to work out how to play that into Baharroth's scheme though. Blues/greys are basically the polar opposite to the reds/tans that everyone else is...