Greetings fellow wargamers!  What do you do when life gives you lemons?  Make lemonade.  So what do you do with GW gives you a plague drone?  Easy, you make a fly prince of Nurgle!

For the most part, this was a no nonsense conversion, simple and direct.  We swapped the standard wings with the fly wings of Nurgle, and the lower body with the abdomen from the Plague Drone kit.

 Although at first we considered using the legs from the drone kit, but we wanted the figure to have a distinct look from the drone kit.  We opted for Tyranid legs because they were bulkier than the standar daemon prince legs, which I thought would help offset the bulky distended abdomen.

 To conceal the previous slot for the flying stand, we used a ‘stinger’ taken from one of the legs.  A little bad of glue and we were right as rain.

 Be sure to check back with us at our website in the next few weeks to see it fully painted!  We plan to go full on nurgle style with this bad boy, but also to keep our palette limited so as to not distract from the conversion.

 For shoulder pads, we wanted something different, so we used these defiler bits.

 
 We offer a variety of painting and assembly services.  Be sure to check out our gallery for other custom transfigurations!  

 And until then, PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!  Caleb, WMG

jd

Greetings fellow Wargamers!  Today I present to you an extra special treat.  This custom daemon herald was a perfect storm of bits that just happened to align at the right time.

About a year ago, a client requested a custom Kali inspired daemon prince.  In order to get plenty of arms for this she goddess, I needed some extra arms.  That also means we had a leftover torso.  And what better thing to do with a leftover torso than transfigure it!

 I liked the feminine look of the figure.  It reminded me of the Slaanesh range.  But the script wrapped around her body also reminded me of the Tzeentch range of daemons, like the Blue Scribe!  What to do  . . .can I have my cake and eat it too?  

The answer was to take the best of both worlds.  I selected multiple arms, a trait generally geared toward Slaanesh, but head tentacles, which is generally geared toward Tzeentch.

 For a color scheme, we selected something neutral that would work for either scheme.  We even applied a little OSL to a few areas like the base, and the gland on the head (taken from the Genestealer bits sprue).

 This is just one example of the types of figures we create at White Metal Games.   Be sure to explore our gallery for other custom transfigurations.

 Also, if you like this particular figure, it is currently available through our ebay store!

 White Metal Games offers a variety of painting and assembly services.  Be sure to check us out here!  

 And until then, just check out that ass above . . . I mean . .

 PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!  

Caleb, WMG

jdj

 Greetings fellow wargamers:

I’ve been playing Tyranids a LONG time, and by a long time I mean since the mid 90’s, back when the 2nd edition codex first reared it’s head!  I can still remember that purple binding!  I’ve been in love with the Great Devourer since it first began its consumption of the universe.  But like all great relationships, time brings change.  New editions means new rules and new models.  So what’s a hobbyist to do with all those old pewter hive tyrants, zoanthropes, and hormagaunts?  Why, keeping playing with them, of course!

 Things don’t get old, they just get ‘retro’.  Got an old Zoanthrope?  Convert it up into a Doom!  Got an old metal Gargoyle?  Rework it into a Parasite?  Got an old 3rd Edition Tyrant?  Now we’re talking!  You’ve got some options . . . .

 This baby is a classic.  It’s got many of the features seen in later models, such as the back spines, and hardened ribcage, the plating on it’s forelegs, etc.  But it also has it’s own style.  Back when this figure came out, the head plate was defiantely and Aliens’ rip off and the tyranid ‘style’ was still being developed.  Nowadays the entire army has a definitive feel to it, but these models still have a place in your collection!

The narrow stances of this figure manes it can fit onto a 40mm base comfortably.  The arm sockets are larger enough to accommodate the bites from the current tyranid monstrous creature line.  So that gives you a choice in my book, . . . you can either choose to count this bad boy as a retro hive tyrant (or swarmlord) or count it as a prime.  Since a 40mm base IS the base the model came with, then it’s perfectly legal strickly speaking to do so.

 For this particular figure you can see I swapped the head out for a more modern tyrant head.  I did, however, modify it a great deal.  Firstly I clipped off the horn.  I felt the horn was indicative of hierarchy, so I felt that as a prime he wouldn’t have this.  Secondly, I added a new cranium piece.  It’s a combination of a tyranid warrior head, with a carnifex tail piece, joined with some sculpting work.  Overall, I wanted him to look like a big ass warrior.  I think overall it gives the impression I was going for.  And you won’t have nay trouble trying to get him to stand out on the tabletop, that’s for sure.

 The old pewter figures require a bit more car and work, of course.  This figure’s arms and head had to be pinned and epoxied in place to make sure it would withstand a few games.  Such is the life when bonding metal to plastic.  But it’ll ensure this figure is good to go for another 10 years!

We are White Metal Games, a full service miniature painting and assembly service based out of Raleigh, NC.  We are always looking for new clients that share our love of wargaming and wants some models custom built and painted to their taste!  Check out our gallery here to see more of our work!

What do you think?  Too big for a prime?  Why I showed you mine, why don’t you show me yours!  PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!

Game on!

Caleb, WMG

Greetings fellow wargamers!  When GW first released their Blight Drones at the release of the Chaos Daemons codex, I knew there was conversion gold potential in the product!  My mind was swimming with visions of Fly Princes of Nurgle, Beasts of Nurgle, Spawn, and Drones!  I was struck by how similar the basic shapes of the Plague Drone of Nurgle by GW and the Blight Drone of Nurgle by Forgeworld were, in fact.  But how would they scale up?  That was the question I set out to answer . .. .

 As you can see, size wise, the models are pretty night and day.  I had a sneaking suspicion going in that they wouldn’t be in the same league, but alas, I had to see it for myself.  I’ve heard more than a few people mention the idea of buying a box of Plague Drones and turning them into a squad of whirliwigs of pestilence . .  sit your fears aside, that threat is no longer credible.  Behold, the spoils of a few hours hard work.  I think in friendly games this model would be more than acceptable, but in tournament play . . . well, I wouldn’t risk it.  I’d just go the whole nine yards and buy the official model from Forgeworld.

Now, that being said, a model like this DOES have it’s uses.  It could make a great poor man’s proxy until someone had enough money sit aside to buy a larger drone.  You could build it on your own for less than $30 bucks! (or you can just buy it here and save yourself the labor and time!)

It could make an interesting ‘stealth drone’ maybe with a little less armor, a slightly weaker gun, few hull points, and maybe the stealth or shrouded special rule, or maybe even the scout rule!  Something to sit it apart from it’s bigger brother.

 Finally, I could see this making a fun themed objective marker in a Nurgle army.  Maybe it’s a prototype drone that the forces of Chaos MUST have returned to them!  .

 There are lots of little things I could do to this model to make it a bit more nurglified.  For example, the housings on the vectored engines could be smeared with epoxy and stippled to better match the big daddy drone.  I could have added more hoses to the under body, etc.  But once I’d answered the question of scale to scale to comparison, I felt I had done by duty to the wargaming community, and I find other projects calling my name.

White Metal Games is a full service miniature painting and assembly service.  Check us out here!  

 Be sure to check out our gallery of images, where you’ll find thousands of interesting models like the above.

 Convinced you could do better?  Well, better get your dronies!  Pick up a box from Rob here!

Greetings fellow wargamers!

A few months ago the conversion bug bit me and bit me hard.  I had purchased the FW Blood Slaughterer of Khorne on ebay, which comes with several extra bits.  I thought about using them on a Daemon Prince or Helbrute, but I wanted to do something a bit more grande and original.  Recently I had been experimenting with the WFB Cairn Wraith figure, and I really like the hunched over look of the wraith.  I also loved the motley robes.  Also being a fan of the Greater Brass Scorpion of Khorne, where the souls of the damned are literally intertwined within the cables of the machine . . . an idea struck me.  Perhaps I could come up with something new.

Hence this beastie was born.  I’m not sure what I might could this thing as.  Perhaps a Daemon Prince, or a Greater Daemon.  Maybe a hellbrute with two close combat weapons.  But regardless of which, There’s something vile about the figure I really like.  It’s bio-mechanical look, with leering faces poking out from behind the ruined robes that barely cover it’s writhing form . .  it’s just the right kind of creepy to me.

For the torso I started with something simple .  . like a small ball.  Then I used a heat gun to warm up some spare lasher tendrils I had lying around.  I wrapped these around the ball, to get a basic ‘torso’ shape.  I then sprinkled in some spare crypt horror bits I had in my box to create the overly large leering faces.

Using a combo of grey stuff and plastic cloaks/capes, I created the funerary shrouds that cover the beastie.  This was also a great way to conceal the joins for the arms and lower tail section.

When painted up, I imagine giving this thing a sort of etheral quality, like a ghost or spectre, fading from green at the bottom to red at the top.  Stay tuned for painted pictures!  I think with some interesting base features, this could really be a nice center piece for a Chaos army or a Daemons army.

My name is Caleb and I am the owner and operator of White Metal Games.  WMG is a miniature painting studio operating out of Raleigh, NC.  We also offer consignment, conversion, and terrain making as services.  Check out our site here!

But until then, PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!  

jd

Insects have always been a prevalent theme in the world of Nurgle.  Normally flies are the name of the game, but I’ve never felt like it was mutually exclusive.  For many years I’ve been experimenting with the form of the Preying Mantis, using it for models such as Daemon Princes or the like.  Often when a good conversion takes root in your mind, your aren’t so much designing it as discovering it, letting your imagination run wild as your fingers meander through your bits box in search of the perfect piece to fit the bill or plug the gap.  

It’s worth noting that other than the head of this beastie, this model is 100% GW bits.  Although there are a few insectoid heads in the GW range, nothing was quite large enough.  Once primed, this head will gel nicely with the rest of the figure. 

 In retrospect, I probably would have dropped the 2nd set of arms (the crushing claws).  Feel a little busy now.  But at the time, I was just in love with the crushing claws and caught up in the moment I pinned them on without a thought. 

I was channeling the old Mantisaur figure from the MOTU range while building this abomination.  I think overall I got the right feel, though perhaps a few antennae would help fill this figure out just a bit.  Not that it needs it . . . it barely fits on the required 90×120 base intended for the maulerfiend as is! 

Love it or hate it, you’ve got to admit it make  an impression.  Imagine the limbs, dripping with gore and bile putrescence eeking out of every postule when fully painted. 

My name is Caleb and I am the owner of White Metal Games, a miniature painting and assembly service in Raleigh, NC.  Be sure to check out our site and stroll through our gallery, which were currently in the process of building.

Also be sure to email us with any questions, comments, or if you’d like a quote for services!  We’re always happy to shoot the breeze with a fellow hobbyist! 

And until then PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!

Caleb, WMG

Greetings fellow wargamers!  This daemon prince was the result of a lazy Saturday morning when my creative juices were flowing and I needed an outlet for them through plastic.    Over time the studio bits box has gotten pretty extensive, and I like to keep track of what I have available to work with.  I happened upon a pair of lower legs from a Fell Beast that I had used a few years ago and just had this idea to have them wrapped around the flying assault marine in mid descent.  But then I had to ask myself who these legs belonged . . .

Scale wise I knew I was looking at a daemon prince, which I LOVE to build.  So I started looking around for other suitable bits to play with.  These wings are from the Chimera kit, which is a treasure trove of bits for the price.  The torso is the standard DP kit, with the exception of a hive tyrant tail that I had lying around.  The head is from the spawn range.

I used pins to attach the marine to the avians feets and in turn the marine to the terrain via a similar rod.  The effect is meant to confer that the two are in the middle of an aerial battle, with the assault marine on the losing end.

Of course, extensive weights were used to balance the model via the base, but the model is remarkably centrally weighted.  It helps to have a good core to work around, so I tried to keep things as close to the center of the base, weight wise, as I could. 

Be sure to check out more of our selected models at White Metal Games. And until then PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS! 

jdj

Greetings fellow wargamers! 

Presented to you here is a Khorne Lord on Juggernaut.  This was a fun if straightforward conversion.  I realized the other day there hasn’t been an official Chaos Lord on Juggernaut for 40k since the old days of 4th edition.  As such I felt it was time for an update. 

I used the regular Warhammer Chaos Lord on Juggernaut from the fantasy range for the base figure.  Most folks use the Blood Crusher kit, but I liked the lord from this kit so much I really wanted to try to utilize as much of the kit as possible.  I kept the original models lower body because I liked the look of the leggings.  For the upper body I used a dremmel to burr out the original torso and insert a Khornish marine torso into the now vacant chest cavity. 

The right arm was swapped with a bolt pistol arm.  A backpack bit was added and fur was sculpted up to hide the gap.  For the helmet, we used an old Kharne helmet we had lying around and swapped the very well know mask with this elongated skull bit.  I think it gives him a really medieval feel, which works really well for the Blood God. 

White Metal Games is a full service miniature assembly and painting service.  Contact us to inquire about a commission.  And until then . . .
PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS! 

Caleb, WMG

I don’t know for the life of me why I don’t remember that my characters have precision shot and precision strike.  

I think it might be that when 6th edition came out, one of the major ‘trends’ in the rules was to use majority characteristics when dealing with units.  IE, if a unit is shot you use majority toughness. 

However, characters are a notable exception to this rule.  When character roll a 6 on any to hit roll, whether it be in close combat or shooting, they get to allocate the hit to a target of their choosing in the target unit.

That mean you can take out plasma gunners, sergeants with power weapons, librarians with force weapons,  and the like. 

Why can’t I just remember it!  Thus far my experience in 6th is that S7 and S8 weapons are king.  Plasma especially, but melta as well.  Why wouldn’t I want to take every chance possible to take these targets out?

It’s worth noting that snap shots and weapons that scatter can never be precise shots. Thank goodness

In melee, precision strikes can only be assigned to engaged models, ie, if a model is not in base contact or 2″ from the combat, they are safe.  This might be another good reason to decline a challenge after all, just not to get too close to the action.  

Does anyone else have trouble remembering to use precise shot and strike, and if so, how do you force yourself to remember?  Different colored dice for your characters? 

Interestingly enough, I haven’t had a single opponent since 6th edition came out look at me and say “Oh, the captain rolls a 6!  I’ll allocate that wound to your lord.” 

Give that captain a melta gun and watch the instant deaths tally up! 

My name is Caleb and I run White Metal Games, a miniature painting and conversion service.

Be sure to check us out, and until then PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!