+ Accept no substitutes +
+ Orks! A long time coming, but Thrugg Bullneck's boyz are ready to take some heads and invade some Chapter homeworlds. Some nice timing, too, as Black Library have just released a new novel set on the world, Legacy of Dorn, by Mike Lee [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+]. I think I'll pick it up and get into the setting before the game. +
+ But enough waffling, let's look at da ladz:
+ Hruk's squad +
+ Second in command of Thrugg's forces, you can have a look at building Hruk in more detail through this link [+noosphericinloadlink embedded+].
+ Cheerful looking bunch, aren't they? I guess when your boss is the boss' mate, you get best pick of the loot (well, after da boss and da boss' boss – and da uvver bosses – have had their go). +
+ I think the greenstuffed grins are my favourite part of this mob, but the nailed-on hand that allows Hruk to use the bolter he looted from some luckless Crimson Fist veteran is a close runner up. +
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| The flaming skull on his belly plate is the Charadon Empire symbol (see below). |
+ Zerox's squad +
+ This squad's got the best examples of the Rogue Trader elements I've tried to get in: a mix of ramshackle weaponry that nevertheless looks manufactured rather than all custom-built; heavier armour than modern orks; and a (slightly anarchic) sense of uniformity. I've tried to get more of a sense of individuality through, so they look like an undisciplined army, rather than a warband of beasts. +
+ Wortoof's squad +
+ The clans – Deathskull, Evil Sunz etc. – weren't around for the Battle for the Farm era, so I ummed and erred about whether to retcon them in or not. In the end, I decided to keep things simple to avoid diluting the look. +
+ With that said, not showing it off isn't the same as saying it's not there – I think it'd be possible to pick out a mob of more Snakebitey-looking boyz, such as the fur-clad Wortoof here. Similarly, the two in the front rank here look slightly more like Blood Axes than the others. +
+ Splatta's squad +
+ This mob's a good example of the contrast between the jokier-looking ork on the right, and the more savage Splatta in the centre. I'm not against humour in orks; I just think it's more fitting when there's a nasty streak to it... +
+ Ident-markers and ikonography +
+ Backplates came in with Waaagh the Orks, and were given a lot of emphasis in terms of markings – working as a bit of blank space equivalent to a Space Marine's shoulderpad. They haven't really been mentioned much since 3rd edition, though they haven't explicitly been written out. The models, however, still have 'em, so I used the info from Rogue Trader to add the symbol of Luggub's Drop Legion to them:
+ Warpaint's also mentioned, so a few of the boyz have got classic chequers, dags and – what better for the troops of the Arch-Arsonist? – flames. +
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| The ork on the right here is based on the Bolta and Kleaver model (rightmost, top row). Can you spot any others? |
+ I'm looking forward to getting 'em on the field. +
Beautiful work - I especially like the way in which a sense of mischief (?) has been injected into the models. Very inspirational. Thank your for sharing.
ReplyDeleteThanks very much – and yeah, I think mischief is probably the right word; though a couple are downright malevolent! :D
DeleteLove them! So much that I have started a couple of my own RT-esque orks, but have had a bit of a stall in progress.
ReplyDeleteBest parts for me: the more realistic colors, the shoulder pads, and the reworked faces.
Cheers – it's been fun to tone the orks down a bit, and make them a bit more sinister in the process.
DeleteI've been looking at way to use GW Orks but make the boys not have destroyed spines... this is aaaaah FABULUOUS!
ReplyDeleteCheers Walt – or should I say WAAAAAGHLT? :)
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