In my current case (figurative and literal) I've got a situation where I no longer really "get" some of the builds, while others work for me.
Inquisitor Samantha, and Interrogator Jack work for me quite well.
The recent Sicarius operative will join that team, and I'll write up stats sooner or later.
And finish off with their Aquila pilot.
Inquisitor Helena is one I've had built and painted for years which currently sort of works, but with the addition of the two alien models brings the character count up to 7, and the model count up to 8, and I'm wondering if that works or not, especially given some of the characters in that group are just heavily altered characters with massive inspiration taken from a few computer games (in one case with a character which is a blend of several other big game/film characters).
I think her warband, especially with Rogue Trader Jacey Jomar (ably played by a Kal model which needs some paint improvements).
That leaves my recent painting efforts for Inquisitor Jack and his warband.
Outside of the scummer conversion of the barbaretta model, I'm finding I'm no longer particularly enthused with the other three.
The Eisenhorn conversion works, as such, but something about it doesn't quite sit right.
Or maybe when I take another look I'll change my mind.
Ditto the plasma gunner, and the assassin - The Sicarius Operative model(s) (aka, the Mass Effect female operative) capture the feel of an assassin in skin-tight suit better than the death cultist does, for my taste/money. And the plasma gunner is a nice model, but just doesn't quite work in some way. I can't put my finger on it.
E: The thing is, I'm not sure if this is actually a model-related issue, or an "I haven't written the background for these characters, what is wrong with me" thing. Perhaps if I tried writing up background suitable for each character, continuing Jack/Samantha's first person narrative style, I might solve the issue that way for this group. Well, maybe, anyway. But I do think some paint/modelling tweaks might help (I'm currently wondering if dorian's legs would be a good replacement for the eisenhorn bionic legs...)
I'm tempted to put the scummer in another warband somewhere else and then just replace Inquisitor Jack with the Sicarius warband I built based off Ghost in the Shell, as the models seem a bit more fitting (pre-paint. I'm still mentally debating the presence of the ex-commissar in that group...). But I'm wondering if that would fit Jack's potential "current" self better?
Given that I have an all-female warband elsewhere (except for the presence of a guardsman with bashed heavy stubber and autopistol), I could remove the male guardsman and replace with the scummer, making it an all-female group (and then backfit with "reasons").
That would open up a bunch of space in the carry case, and admittedly remove three models from my collection.
I've also got another warband mostly made up of models built from a bunch of spare left over parts, which I threw together, but again don't know what to do with. They need painting though so I guess we'll see? They'll probably go, though.
Kind of a situation where I'm wondering what I "need" and what I, well, don't anymore.
E2:
To provide a little more in the way of content, I'll cover the ones that do speak to me, or why some of the others did work for me.
Example:
Samantha Arianna Morannon as an Inquisitor works, from the model perspective, because of the unique combination of parts, and also the helmeted head. You don't really know who is under there, save from the background. Between one thing or another it could as easily be a man under that breastplate as a woman (in theory anyway). It sort of calls to mind the unknown identity of the Doctor, for me (referenced on the model by my use of a wand-like widget hanging from her belt, as much as her hidden or disguised identity (as such)), and also that of Master Chief from Halo, and others with relatively faceless or somehow "hidden" protagonists.
Then you have her background (or the official one, anyway) which gives her more depth, and (I hope) humanity, making her relatable and understandable, in opposition to the facelessness of her appearance on the table.
With Interrogator Jack, you have a rather dashing (yes?) individual, in a long dark coat, with a nice big gun. Rather stereotypical, but hopefully also calling to mind the modern sherlock's penchant for a long dark coat (the judge having a book in his pocket on the model sort of adds to this as in my mind that little book could be how the Interrogator keeps notes). The base judge model itself needs little in the way of changes, as it is a nicely impressive/imposing model in and of itself.
My recent Sicarius operative does not have stats, so largely on appearance, you have a form-fitting bodysuited model, with a visor and suitable equipment for sneaking into places, and then killing the target (or maybe doing something else, anything could be in those pouches) and while the colour of the suit is a little brighter than I first set out to make it (the effect of washing dark angel green over a white primer was too striking to pass up), I still think it really gives the model a strong look.
Finally, the upcoming pilot model for that group has a nicely sculpted head that I couldn't resist painting up, so the rest of the model came with it, and I decided the aquila pilot would have to be given character, rather than being a faceless mook. I'm also wondering if she'll prove to be a romantic interest for Jack, as we don't always see that appear on the Inquisitor battlefields. Then again, maybe not. I haven't decided yet.
For others, like Helena's warband, it was less of a character and more of a concept I was trying to capture - the feel of certain characters from certain TV shows, films, or games, and then rebuild them on the tabletop as their own unique characters, often amalgamated from the core/interesting features of the chosen character(s). I've kept them as much because of the models, as the ideas behind them, but I still keep wondering if the characters need re-writes.
For Jack as an Inquisitor, and his warband, I think it's a case of needing to draw a mental picture with them and writing the backstory to fit, or using the words to paint the picture. Something like that.
With the Ghost in the Shell Sicarius warband, it's back to the same as Helena's, in that I'm seeking to capture the feel of that show, but creating riffs of the target characters, to a lesser or greater degree, although given that one will end up being a straight up model version of the Major, that will be very difficult. But I couldn't resist the opportunity to model them up once it came across my desk, so there we go. Hopefully I can at least write some kind of an interesting background.
Mordecai and co came from building a 28mm warband, and then rebuilding at 54mm to compensate. They've sort of grown organically, although I still have a little trouble wrapping my head around the monodominant style, at times. I still need to finish the enginseer character though, so there's that.
Then I've got several groups who need to be defined or modified as I haven't quite decided what to do with them yet.
I'm going to have to figure out how they shake out exactly, as currently I need to organise them just right.
Especially given some of my more recent modelling efforts.
