Inquisitor Ehrhardt and Co. (Or my attempt at Inq28 minis- Pic Heavy)

[Sabotage!]

I want to start by saying hello to this modeling and painting thread in which I will try my hand at some Inquisition themed models. Following this, I feel a bit of background is necessary. I've been playing 40k for a good while (since the release of 3rd edition), and as all young chaps do, started with Space Marines (Black Templars). When 4th edition came out, and I had a better understanding of the game's fluff, I decided IG were the faction for me. With playing IG came reading the Gaunt's Ghosts books, and a healthy appreciation for Dan Abnett. When I mentioned this to my buddy a few years back he pointed me in the direction of Eisenhorn. Despite that I was working full time and enrolled in College full time at the time, I managed to finish the Omnibus in a week. It was fantastic, and after reading the Ravenor Trilogy, I decided the Inquisition was pretty much the coolest aspect of 40k.

This came with playing Dark Heresy (which I thoroughly enjoyed), Inquisimunda, and most recently Death Squads (Which I greatly prefer to Necromunda). Not to mention reading any bit of fluff on the Inquisition I could get my hands on. They had all the diversity and uniqueness of IG (on a regiment basis) but taken to a very large exponent.

So after trying many options out on how to best play a game related to playing an Inquisitor (or a character involved with the Inquisition in some manner), I've developed many opinions. 1) 40k is not the game to represent the Inquisition, Inquisitors do not spend much of their time in large military conflicts, plus it fails to take note of any of their non-combat skills (which in my opinion are more useful). 2) Skirmish games are fun to play with an Inquisition themed warband (though myself and my gaming group prefer Skirmish games where characters can develop anyways), however they do little to go into depth about each character and what differentiates them from the other joe in their band.

So with this in mind I have decided to try my hand at Inquisitor. The tough part will be convincing my gaming group to play. On the plus side though, if I do, I may actually get to play against a fully painted band at some point  (My buddies are notorious for never finishing the application of paint to their models, though my Fantasy army would definitely fall into this category...)

As of late I have been pretty busy with work and my post-baccalaureate education (oh and motivation), so modeling and painting (especially painting), are often neglected. I figured by posting my stuff up, it would be a good motivator to me, and I could get some helpful feedback, and who knows, maybe even give someone some inspiration  .

So without much further ado, here are the (unpainted and poor quality) current models for use in Inq28 (Special thanks to Kaled for reminding me my camera had a macro feature). I will mention, I have many more retinue type models than Inquisitors, I'm having trouble thinking up ideas for a Puritan and Radical Inquisitor (I would like three total, As Ehrhardt is pretty moderate).

Inquisitor Garran Ehrhardt


As you can see the GS work on the side of his hood needs to be cleaned up a bit.

1st Lt. Vendrek Hellmann - Former Inquisitional Storm Trooper - Ehrhardt's longest serving retinue member from back when he was an Interrogator.


This is Ehrhardt's Interrogator - Irsus Vatclef

Here is a Hive Ganger hero, not sure what Inquisitor's band he is going in, or even his name.

Here is a as yet unnamed Psyker- Not sure where which Retinue he is going.


Here is a Female Blade Master who is also as yet unnamed, I'm trying to make her more "40k", but am at a loss for ideas without throwing bits that will look unwieldy on her. I'm planning on getting some Etched Brass from FW her soon and they may be utilized.


Here is my Priest/ Herald, Pretty sure he is going with the Radical (The Empire Flagellant kit is pretty ideal for Radicals)

Here is yet another unnamed, my tech priest:


This is a random Arbite, who I like something about his simplicity, and feel is a little bland.

This is a Field Physician who became a bit of a sadist when operating on Secessionist troops during a civil war, and was pulled from execution by whichever Inquisitor snags him to use as a Surgeon/ Torturer, this model was very much influenced by Molotov's torturer, but I'm thinking of painting his outfit as a white hospital uniform (spattered with dried gore of course).

This next guy is a bit hard to see because I couldn't get the lighting right. He is a former IG Captain of a Platoon of the Neferian 7th, whom himself and the few survivors of the Platoon  were inducted after they were loaned to his service to hunt down a Heretic by my as yet unmade Puritan Inquisitor.

Another model Inducted by my Puritan Inquisitor from the Neferian 7th - 1st. Sgt. Pharaoh.

A few more men of the Neferian 7th - Pvt. Sheen and Sgt. Spiegel



Here are a couple unmodified GW models I have plans for in the near future:


Then a few models from my IG army (Kampfer 88th "Poltergeists" just to acclimate everyone to my painting style and such (The goggles on most of the models were too heavily shadowed due to lighting, the Bodyguard and Regiment Officer have red and the Bionic Captain and Storm trooper have blue):






Hope this wasn't too much info and I appreciate any feedback! I have a Naval Boarding Veteran and Very Zealous pyromaniac in the think Tank, and I'm working on ideas for my Radical and Puritan Inquisitors! Thanks for looking!

[Molotov]

Hello!

You clearly have some interesting ideas. A few points:

- Whilst you're using the macro feature, and the pictures have come out pretty well, they're far too small to make commenting easy. I would recommend that you zoom in, crop the extraneous area (even in a programme like paint) and that would enable you to receive more comments (and for the comments themselves to be more useful.)

So:

- Erhardt's not a bad model, clearly quite imposing. I like what you've done with the cloak, but he clearly still looks a bit too much like a Space Marine scout. Some of that will depend on the painting, of course. The bolt pistol probably won't win you too many friends, but the addition of the shock maul gives him an interesting character. Already I get the idea that this could be an Inquisitor who used to be an Arbitrator or Enforcer, a pragmatic soul who tries to maintain order and stability whilst hunting those who cross his path.

- The Storm Trooper looks very good, from what I can make out it's a very skillful conversion of a Space Marine scout sniper? If so, kudos. What I'd say from a personal point of view is that you've gone to the trouble of making a model who looks very similar to the metal Kasrkin - but you could've taken the opportunity to do something different. Giving him a bare head, for example, would be a prime opportunity (I would've recommended one of the heads from the Catachan Heavy Weapons team, or the head with the beret from the Catachan Command Squad.) Inquisitor is more about characters and less about archetypes.

The Interrogator seems decent (I don't recognise the head; where's it from?) but having him kneeling down might be a bit of a pain. The Hive Ganger is a pretty good representation of the old plastic Goliaths, actually - the sort of disposable muscle that some Inquisitors might be keen to use.

The Psyker's not bad - you've made a fair attempt with a model kit that is pretty hard to convert. (That said, you can see a Dark Eldar Archon by Ron from From The Warp that shows you what's possible.) I think he'll definitely improve with painting.

The Blademaster isn't bad, but you run into the problems that I've been trying to work around - how to use Dark Elves/Dark Eldar without them looking like Dark Elves/Dark Eldar. I would recommend changing the head and/or the blades of the weapons she's using - both would remove some of the Elvish design cues. Quite a nice pose, though.

The Herald's solid enough, and I echo your thoughts on the Flagellant kits. They're solid - and not just for radicals! With your tech-priest, I would recommend losing some of the Space Marine bits (not sure he needs the massive spear) and would actually recommend that you put the whole thing on a flying base. Anti-grav technology suits the Mechanicus, and it would be somewhat like Kierkegaard'sScribe. I'd also suggest, much like PDH's Magos Spur that you sculpt a hood (but then you might've been intending to anyway.) Nice choice on the head, though. I think that in Inquisitor you are encouraged to use some of the vibrant and odd characters you wouldn't see on the battlefield. A floating tech-priest is great. The "legs" you've got currently could be turned into grasping dendrites of various types. Very fitting!

Not sold on the Arbitrator at the moment, unfortunately. The Torturer is solid enough, but I would encourage you to give him some sort of shoulderpads. The best options are the Scout one (intended for the heavy bolter) or there are some in the Valkyrie kit. If you did that (or even if you didn't!) I'd encourage you to sculpt some sleeves for him, probably rolled up. It would be relatively easy to do, and would improve the look of the model quite a bit.

Thus far you're doing pretty well. I would just encourage you to try to do different things - things you wouldn't or couldn't do with an Imperial Guard army.

[Sabotage!]

Thanks for the feedback Molotov!

On the camera-work: While I do agree, unfortunately this is as far as my camera (which will be replaced here shortly, have an upgrade ordered as of yesterday) can zoom in macro mode before I get a "focus too close" warning and the camera will not allow me to take a picture. As for the cropping, I can and definitely will be doing that in the future.


On Ehrhardt: Thanks! I've encountered the same issue to some extent, when I get some etched brass I think the chest icon will come off and I'll put and =I= symbol on it. One other difficulty I've encountered is that the SM scout legs are porportionate to the Scout chest, but I've yet to encounter any other legs that are.

On Hellmann: Yep, It's a Scout Sniper conversion, and thank you. I do like the metal Kasrkin (and own a couple squads), but I often feel they are a bit too bulky and angular, so this is an attempt to give the 40k Storm Trooper a bit of a different feel. I do feel their are some opportunities to distinguish him a bit, but not sure what route to take. Maybe add some Guard-style luck talismans or do a little freehand image (or quote) on the back of his hellgun-pack. It's funny you mention that, I almost gave him the beret head, but in the end decided on the helmet for the "Imposing faceless factor," that I feel is pretty necessary to someone who kicks in doors like a Storm Trooper. Albeit, that may just be my pet peeve of heavily armored individuals not protecting one of their most vital areas (IE How I'm fond of full helmets 101).

On Vetclef: I think you may be right on the kneeling, I'm pretty sure he will be getting a leg swap soon. I was going for a more dynamic pose, and I think the kneeling was actually counter-inuitive. Oh, and the head is from the Empire Greatsword kit.

The ganger was very much inspired by the Goliath range, and I feel adds some good flavor to the range.

On the Blademaster: Exactly my issue, it is very hard to make the DE stuff look like stuff that doesn't belong to that range. I was going for a more archaic look, as she is supposed to be from a less technologically developed world. I think a blade and head switch would definitely help, and I'll have to look into some viable alternatives. The main issue with the 40k range, is I've found very little in terms of plastic that could be used as remotely femine, the body porportions even on more generic bodies tend to be wrong. I may have to delve deeper into the fantasy range.

on the Tech-Priest: A hood would be a very good addition, and I think a flying base would be perfect. That's really one of the best ideas I've encountered yet. I do agree on the spear, I had a really hard time filling that hand up, and I think it may be a bit excessive. I was using the whole "Every Tech-priest needs a staff of sorts," archetype, which as you said Inquisitor is not about archetypes. Any ideas on what to put into that hand?

I'm not too fond of the arbite either, he ended up looking a bit too much like a Cadian with high-tech head gear (Ie Bland). I think another issue is that the look of both the 28mm/54mm enforcers from GW is very distinct (and actually one I like quite a bit), I may have to swap him with a GW enforcer and alter him a bit (though I'd need to get that dremel working again).

I'd agree on the torturer on the sleeves, I definitely want to do that. I'm not too sure on shoulder pads, as he is meant to be the type of guy who doesn't run into combat and it may look a bit unncessary.

I really appreciate the advice, and hopefully towards the middle of next week I'll have a bit of free time to make some changes and perhaps even paint one of these guys.

[Molotov]

Never a problem; I'm always keen to see other INQ28 modellers - especially those who approach it in the right spirit.

On the camera-work: While I do agree, unfortunately this is as far as my camera (which will be replaced here shortly, have an upgrade ordered as of yesterday) can zoom in macro mode before I get a "focus too close" warning and the camera will not allow me to take a picture. As for the cropping, I can and definitely will be doing that in the future.

I don't mean zooming with the camera; typically, when you've got the macro mode enabled, you can't zoom. What I mean is using your computer to make the picture larger. These pictures really aren't that great.

On Ehrhardt: Thanks! I've encountered the same issue to some extent, when I get some etched brass I think the chest icon will come off and I'll put and =I= symbol on it. One other difficulty I've encountered is that the SM scout legs are porportionate to the Scout chest, but I've yet to encounter any other legs that are.

Space Marine Scouts are very distinctive, and it is difficult to make them look different. And they then do tend to only look like Guardsmen and/or Arbitrators/Enforcers. The winged skull is one identifier; as is the back of ther armour, though your cloak obscures a lot of that. But the legs are very "Space Marine Scout" and that can cause some troubles. The result is that your Inquisitor is solid, if somewhat generic. Hopefully painting could rectify it somewhat.

On Hellmann: Yep, It's a Scout Sniper conversion, and thank you. I do like the metal Kasrkin (and own a couple squads), but I often feel they are a bit too bulky and angular, so this is an attempt to give the 40k Storm Trooper a bit of a different feel. I do feel their are some opportunities to distinguish him a bit, but not sure what route to take. Maybe add some Guard-style luck talismans or do a little freehand image (or quote) on the back of his hellgun-pack. It's funny you mention that, I almost gave him the beret head, but in the end decided on the helmet for the "Imposing faceless factor," that I feel is pretty necessary to someone who kicks in doors like a Storm Trooper. Albeit, that may just be my pet peeve of heavily armored individuals not protecting one of their most vital areas (IE How I'm fond of full helmets 101).

Whilst it's true that 40k models are often very careless about their headshot potential, it's a defining aspect of the game. Plus, just because the model may be bare-headed doesn't mean that he isn't wearing a helmet in the game. As an example, take Titus Dio, my Arbitrator. He is bare-headed, but has a helmet on his belt. If I were to replicate your conversion (and with decent pictures to work off, I may well do!) I would certainly consider the beret head, as Inquisitor is about making identifiable characters, not "generic faceless Kasrkin".

on the Tech-Priest: A hood would be a very good addition, and I think a flying base would be perfect. That's really one of the best ideas I've encountered yet. I do agree on the spear, I had a really hard time filling that hand up, and I think it may be a bit excessive. I was using the whole "Every Tech-priest needs a staff of sorts," archetype, which as you said Inquisitor is not about archetypes. Any ideas on what to put into that hand?

I hadn't noticed the storm bolter on the first glance. With a power-weapon of some kind, a storm bolter and a plasma pistol, I have to say that he's beyond scary! I would leave him weaponless, perhaps relying on a servo-skull for protection - but not necessarily, as I have got some Inquisitor characters who go into scenarios without any weaponry at all. For me, a challenge in 28mm sometimes is finding good weaponless models.

[Sabotage!]

Well again, it is much appreciated to have some veteran advice, as I'm still very new to Inquisitor.

Haha, my camera ineptitude shows again. I think that's definitely a good option, as you are right, these pictures are hard to work with. I resized them in photobucket, and I believe there is even a magnification tool in there, I'll give it a whirl. Also Kaled gave me some good tips on taking pictures which I will use at my next opportunity to improve my abilities.

I would definitely agree about the SM scout legs, they do tend to be very distinct, and hard to differentiate. Might have to work with that a bit, and hopefully some paint will help Ehrhardt out.

I was thinking about the helmet issue a bit while working today, and I realized that SM scout's chests have very deep neck guards, in which I very well could just magnetize a few different heads and swap between them (I'm pretty sure my smallest magnets would work great). Then I could have the satisfaction of an identifable character on the shelf, and that he would have something to protect his face in games. I'll definitely try to get some decent pics up soon. I also really like what you did with Titus, who is an amazingly characterful model by the way.


That's definitely an idea, because yes, at the moment, he is armed to the teeth. A Servo-skull is a really great idea, especially as I have really under utilized them (IE not at all), and they are very 40k. Cutting down weapons will definitely be something I'll do when I get my hands back to modeling.

[Sabotage!]

I had an unexpected hour of free time earlier this eve and had an opportunity to test out the magnetization of Lt. Hellmann's head (and his new...err new to him head), and I must say it worked pretty superbly. The magnets hold well, and were a perfect size. I've done arms and tank armaments, but this was my first attempt at magnetizing heads on 40k models. I also tested out a few new pointers on my pictures, so I hope these look a little better (they do to me at least). And I will say Molotov, the beret head is a good fit and adds lots of character. Especially the sneer. It just oozes contempt, which any Inquisitorial Henchman (especially a former Storm Trooper) should have in plenty.


The backpack needs a bit of cleaning up on this one (maybe the back of the Hellgun's GS work too?).

And here he is with a (primed) Beret head.


Thanks all in advance for any feedback!

[Molotov]

Now those are decent pictures. To me, he does still look a lot like a Space Marine scout, but I think with a militaristic colour scheme (rather than the bright heraldry of the Astartes) he'll look a lot more like a Guardsman.

Nice use of the vox-caster to create the power generator for the Hellgun.

As they say, paint hides a multitude of sins, so don't worry if some of your GS work is a little rough - the paint will hide a lot of it, and you'll improve with time. What's important is creating fun and involving stories with a cast of characters you care about - that's what separates Inquisitor from 40k's "send tactical squad of Space Marines in to get mown down; don't care because they'll be back next game" paradigm.

Looking forward to seeing more of these! 

[precinctomega]

Does Pte Sheen always think he's winning? 

R.

[Sabotage!]

Glad to hear the pictures turned out better! I am currently looking at at black (for the armor plates), and dark grey/ dark blue (for the cloth) look for him. I'm trying to steer away from red and white as he is a "former" Inquisitorial Storm Trooper, and I don't want him to look like a "current" one. I should have some more WIP pics up sometime this upcoming week.

Does Pte Sheen always think he's winning? 

He also has tiger's blood and Adonis DNA. Haha, nice catch there. I watched the movie Platoon about a week before I made this guy, and the head I used really made me think of Charlie Sheen's character in that film. That and this guy has proved to be a dismal failure in all my Death Squads games involving him (due to copious drug use would be my guess). The important part is he thinks he's winning.

[Sabotage!]

Hey all, it's been a while as school and work have been pretty pressing with finals coming up and conducting interviews to fill a position. Anyways I had a few hours to devote to some modeling this week. And the results are to follow!

In addition my gaming group is really liking the idea of Inquisitor, and we have started giving the rules more thorough readings and creating the background for the setting of our campaign (one of them already has built four models in his chaos cult! I'm hoping to get pics shortly, as they are pretty cool). Right now we are working on a way to have "Collaborative GMing," and are looking at writing the back ground as a group, and alternating missions as GM. Kind of a "I take the story, direct it in one path and determine the results then pass it off to the next guy to take it in a new direction." I feel this may be a good opportunity for everyone to experience all aspects of the game, and will hopefully make for a unpredictable and captivating story ( Sometime I feel that large campaigns directed by one person (especially in role-playing) can get kind of a repetitive feel).

In addition to these pictures Lt. Hellman is under the brush and making good progress (he should be completed by the end of this upcoming week). I have some etched brass on the way from Forgeworld for my Inquisitors (Yah for crossing the Atlantic and all the way across the U.S.). I also have some models and bases on the way from GW (Some Arbites and a few Inquisitors, including the Gideon Lorr model!).

Probably the most exciting part (at least to me), is that I've started writing Ehrhardt's brief biography (and should have it posted relatively soon), and I'm really getting into it. I'll also have a bit of a story which has lead to the current state of affairs and should have that up shortly (relatively) as well.

Please let me know what you think!

First a bit of work on old models:

Interrogator Vatclef (Guess which Ordos he is joining if he gets promoted....)



Puritan Inquisitor Ivan Carius



Ex-Naval Boarding Trooper, nutcase and combat-stim abuser, Haroth "The Hellhound" Sturmfelder



Lastly my take on an Acro-Flagellent from a Fantasy Ghoul kit (he is still WIP, needs more chemical vials). Apologies for the lighting on the first picture.




Feedback is much appreciated!

[Molotov]

The torturer looks fantastic, putting the sleeves on was a great idea that's improved him. Vatclef is quite a decent model; I like the conversion you've done with his feet, though if I were you I'd ignore the fact that his armour looks like Tau armour and just say that it's a particular type of flak (or light carapace) armour.

Ivan Carius is a bit generic, really - but the "Hellhound" is pretty cool. Personally I'd remove the model from his base (such things tend to be the realm of 40k, not Inquisitor) but he is quite dynamic, and the bit of background you provided already sets him in good stead.

I'm not such a fan of the Arco-Flagellant, but that's more an issue I have myself - the best Arco-Flagellant I ever saw was by Pega; and if I could only make something as dynamic, I'd love to include it in INQ28. That said, your model should be entirely adequate, it's just a gripe of my own.

You look to be progressing well! How are the rest of your group doing?

[Sabotage!]

Well thank you, I feel he looks much better with the sleeves. I think he'll fit in much better in a hospital/ torture chamber now. I think that's probably a good idea, it might be a bit too ostentatious for an Interrogator to be walking around in Tau armor.

I did have a bit of a hard time with Ivan, especially with his pose. He doesn't come off as particularly dynamic. I'm debating a leg swap, but am having a hard time finding fitting legs that are not very static (greatcoat/robe/plate mail).

I really enjoyed making "The Hellhound," I was looking for an idea for a drug-abusing combat psychopath and I saw that Necromunda pistol in my bits box and the first thing that crossed my mind was "Naval Pistol," thus the idea came into light. I will definitely remove the figure from the base, as you brought up a really good point (In 40k models on the base are appropriate because you are often trying to differentiate a character from a hundred similarly garbed models), and  I do feel the base is really cluttered (Ironically the original model I made for his base I ended up liking a lot and is becoming a character after I do some work on him). Part of the background fiction I'm working on is the second encounter between Ehrhardt and Carius (which sets the place for the current campaign), and I'll have a bit more info on him in there. I'm also hoping to get brief profiles up for all the characters too before the campaign starts.

I really like how the flagellant turned out personally, but not so much after seeing Pega's conversion, haha. To me that looks even better than 54mm version, and is without any doubt the best flagellant model I have seen to date. That's a truly amazing model.

Well thank you, I like to fool myself into thinking I am. One of the guys is going really well. He is doing a Chaos Cult, and has his Prophet (leader), a Mutant, and a Couple of Traitor Guardsmen/ PDF guys assembled (I hope to get some pictures up of them soon). The other two (and possibly a third), are picking through the rules still. One of them is leaning towards playing a rogue trader (he seems to have a thing for very greedy/ sociopathic characters, which I suppose is an Arch-type about Rogue Traders, but funny none the less), and I'm guessing the other guy will make an Inquisitor.

[Molotov]

Pega's models are definitely worth looking at for the inspiration.

Link, Link, Link, Link would just be the start. We can all aspire to that!

Any chance of seeing some paint soon?

[precinctomega]

Haroth, FTW! Now that is a proper Inq28 mini. Odd parts combined into something infinitely cooler.

Also, the addition of the sleeves to the torturer is perfect: just what that mini needed.

Painty, painty!

R.

[Sabotage!]

Pega does some pretty fantastic stuff. His greenstuff work is amazing, some of the stuff on those models I wouldn't even think possible had I not seen it.

I've already started painting on Lt. Hellmann, and as tomorrow is my last day of final exams, I should be able to finish him and have him posted by the end of the week. The Hive Ganger and the Herald are also primed and next on my list to paint, though it seems Haroth will be up soon due to his popularity. I should also have Ehrhardt's back story up by the end of the week as well, and possibly a bit of the campaign setting (with a back story I'm working at).