Xander:
Warning: May contain Bioshock and Bioshock 2 spoilers!
Our local store, Black Knight Games is having a call-to-arms for Malifaux. Spend some cash, get some models, paint them in the time limit and get some store credit. Pretty simple. This is my progress blog for said event, it’s a replica of what I will be posting on the BKG forum. I hope you like it!
Call to Arms: Malifaux – Souls of Rapture (Leviticus Crew)
The Plan (June 21st, 2011):
A man has a choice, I chose the impossibleMy brother (Vexxus) roped me into doing the Call to Arms for Malifaux. When he described the game to me, the setting seemed very reminiscent of Bioshock, a video game which I have a great fondness for. I had always wanted to model some Bioshock-themed models, but never wanted to do a full “army” of them for Warhammer 40k or anything; this seemed like the perfect opportunity to do it.
Andrew Ryan
I began looking at various crews and set out to try and find something that would work as a Counts-As crew and a great starting place for models. I settled on Leveticus.
The Steampunk Abominations and Hollow Waifs work perfectly for Splicers. After some thinking, I also thought that Leveticus himself could work well for Jack (the player character);his use of Plasmids can represent the use of Magic. After staring at Rusty Alyce for a while, I thought she was a perfect match for the proportions of a Big Sister: her hair and clothes even looked like the grown-up Eleanor Lamb.
The next step was figuring out how I would make the Big Daddy models and what they would represent. Looking things over, they could easily be swapped for the Desolation Engine or Killjoys within the Outcasts, but since Leveticus can hire Constructs and Undead from outside the Outcasts (at no extra cost) they could also represent a Peacekeeper or a Guardian (which might be more thematic and representative). Likely, I will try each of them and see what works well for the crew. For the models, there was really only one choice, Brad Shier’s Hard Suit:
(Note: I didn’t paint this, but I did order 2 of these models! They haven’t arrived yet.
)
For Little Sisters I had intended to buy The Stolen figures. But I neglected to write down what I wanted until I was making the order at the store, and I mistakenly bought a Candy model instead. She’ll still work, but I don’t like the model as much as the girl in The Stolen boxed set. Anyone want to swap Candy for her? :D Additionally, I picked up this set:
This has a great splicer (Flesh Construct perhaps?) and a decent little sister. Though I still really want the model from The Stolen. sigh
So that’s the plan. I may do more characters in the future, if I get inspired, but this is enough for now.
Update #1 (July 8th, 2011):
I am Andrew Ryan, and I’m here to ask you a question: Is a man not entitled to the sweat of his brow?After doing some other painting and finishing off a contest entry, I was able to start modeling some of my Rapture crew.
Andrew Ryan
I began by cutting of Leveticus’ left hand, and using a Warhammer Ghoul’s hand instead. I wanted the pose to be shooting the Electric Plasmid lightning. I also put a pistol in his hand, but on reflection, I think I might use a red wrench instead (as Leveticus does not use pistols, and the wrench seems more iconic somehow. I will probably trim down the nails a bit and thicken up his wrist. I want to put the chain tattoos on his wrists when I paint him. I am also still looking for a better head.
Next I started working on the Big Sister.
I started working on her scuba gear first. I found a perfectly sized round plastic piece for the helmet (from the Chimera tank Lasguns), and using a bit of plastic tube from Gale Force Nine, I made the port-hole window. I will be adding more detail to this as well. For the scuba tank I used a Dwarf steam drill from the Dwarf Miner kit; I also used a valve from that kit as well as a small manhole from the Chimera kit. Using more plastic tube, I cut rings to make the cage/basket that is attached to the tank. From here, I intend to add more plastic build out the cage. I also started adding the splint-things to her left leg. I will need to clean it up a bit, but I like the effect so far. I will mimic this on the other leg as well.
I decided that I would magnetize the scuba Helmet and the original Rusty Alyce head. Rusty looks a lot like Eleanor Lamb, so I wanted the option of having her - sans helmet.
Lots more details to add to both of these guys, but a good start so far.
Here’s a pic of the models that I will be making into splicers. I like their overall look, so I might not change too much with them. While they are not strictly identical to the splicers from the game, I like their aesthetic enough to think that they could be Rapture denizens. I will likely try to make at least one rabbit mask for one of the females, however. I also want them to have all their limbs, so I will be supplementing some of them with ghoul and zombie components.
I dug out a load of bits I thought might help me with the project and I snapped a pic, because, who doesn’t love pictures? (and bits!).
That’s all for now, thanks for reading!
