Blood and Brass, pt. 1: Silent Behemoth
“There are rumours that Brother Garron hasn’t uttered a single word since the beginning of the Long War, and there may be some truth to that. But tell me: After being felled and left for dead by those he considered brothers on the blasted plains of Istvaan, after the shame of Terra and after the sundering of our once glorious legions during the hellish night of madness on Skalathrax, what is there left to say?”
Huntmaster Deracin
Alright, everyone, I promised you red and brass, and I intend to make good on that promise! So let’s kick of a mini-series focusing on my World Eaters in order to show you the models I have managed to complete over the Christmas holiday, as part of my Call of Chaos vow over at The Bolter & Chainsword! You may already have seen the first model that was part of the vow, my custom Khârn the Betrayer. Today, let’s continue with a model I am particularly proud of.
I am talking about the Doomwall, a Chaos Lord named for his massive suit of ancient Terminator armour. The armour is the most important thing here, because this project originally began as an attempt to build a (plastic) model incorporating visual elements from GW’s elusive Mk 1 Tactical Dreadnought armour, as seen in this plan view:
Or in this concept sketch for Terminators in the original Space Hulk by Jes Goodwin:
If you want the full story, the project originally started here and then massively improved thanks to a fantastic piece of advice by fellow hobbyist Carnosaur93 regarding the placement of the shoulder pads. More inspiration for the actual conversion was drawn from two excellent pieces of art by Greyall for his characters Pramus Kholosk (of the Imperial Fists) and Mjuron Vvharkhor (of the World Eaters). Greyall’s art was especially helpful for this project, because it moves beyond the somewhat clunky and outdated original design and explores what a modern interpretation of the Mk 1 armour might look like, were Forgeworld to explore the idea today.
So after much to and fro, I settled on this final version of the Doomwall:
I do realise of course that this is not a perfectly accurate rendition of Mk 1 armour: There are far more faithful renditions of the original designs around — just check out Dark Rage’s excellent Mk 1 Terminators, for example. There’s also the fact that I have incorporated a number of visual cues from different armour variants on the model: The crest of hair came from the original artwork in the Horus Heresy trading card game depicting Cataphractii armour, while the reactor section was inspired by the actual Forgeworld Cataphractii models. The legs have remained unchanged, representing the chaos version of Indomitus armour, rather than the actual Mk 1 design — you could probably say that this model is my attempt at a “best of” collection of pre-heresy Terminator armour design cues, with a noticeable Mk 1 bend.
Oh, and I’ve explained it before, but just in case: The Space Wolves thunder hammer was chosen because the wolf head on it could also be interpreted as a representation of the War Hounds’ original legion badge, before they were reborn as the World Eaters.
So the conversion had been finished for a while, but I was still waiting for the right moment to paint it (which basically translates to: I was too afraid and/or lazy to actually start painting in my case). But the Call of Chaos provided the perfect incentive! And so, a short while later, the Doomwall was finished (this was actually the last model I painted in 2014, finished on December 31st):
There’s not that much to say about the paintjob, really: I basically gave the Doomwall my usual World Eaters treatment, and he really does look pretty sexy in red and bronze, don’t you think? I also added a bit of a visual flourish to the base, in the form of an unfortunate, long dead loyalist Astartes.
And here’s the Doomwall together with the other members of Lord Captain Lorimar’s retinue that have been finished so far. Behold the beginnings of Lorimar’s Fist:
The objective I am trying to accomplish for these guys is to come up with a squad of Terminators where every model is quite unique, with their own individual set of weapons and customised armour (which is a bit ironic, really, when you consider that most of the models so far are based on the same Chaos Lord in Terminator armour…;) Anyway, I am really happy with the way these guys are coming along, because they look very much like World Eaters (at least to me), without merely aping the look of the FW World Eaters Terminators. Alright, yes, one of them actually is a FW World Eaters Terminator, but that’s besides the point 😉
All in all, I am very happy with the Doomwall: The model looks massive and intimidating, yet there is also something almost contemplative about this guy, don’t you think?
The massive armour and closed helmet also makes him seem somewhat mysterious, if you ask me, and it was this quality that I wanted to expand upon for the character’s background:
Brother Garron, “The Doomwall”
In battle, the hulking figure of Brother Garron is a sight to be feared, a towering, utterly silent warrior, smashing all opposition with mighty swings of his enormous thunder hammer, his baroque suit of artificer warplate seemingly impervious to damage. This has earned him the epithet Doomwall, and it is a name spoken with a certain tenseness by the legionaries of the 4th, for so much about this silent Behemoth is shrouded in mystery: Why does his weapon still bear the heraldic device of the War Hounds? And while his heavily modified suit of prototype Tactical Dreadnought Armour stands as a testament to Huntmaster Deracin’s ingenuity, what remains of the man within?
Some whisper that Garron actually fought in the first wave at Istvaan III, as part of the loyalist remnants of the legion that were to be purged by their own brethren. Yet how he survived that ordeal and why he now serves as a silent enforcer to Lord Captain Lorimar remains an enigma. Only the Master of the Hunt himself and his most trusted lieutenants could divulge more of the Doomwall’s history, yet they seem reluctant to do so.
And in any case, the only mind holding the absolute truth of the matter would be that of Brother Garron himself — and he remains ever silent…
As always, thanks for looking and stay tuned for more!
February 4, 2015 at 09:50
That’s a fantastic conversion, a very well created character. Good job 🙂
February 4, 2015 at 16:55
Cheers, mate!
February 4, 2015 at 10:27
Very nice. Really dig the omnious feel of the mini.
February 4, 2015 at 16:56
Thanks, mate: That was a pretty important aspect for me during the creation of this model, so I am really happy that it seems to come across in the finished piece!
February 4, 2015 at 11:01
A very nice presentation, great conversion and solid paint job. What else can a Chaos player ask for?
February 4, 2015 at 16:57
More bitz — a chaos player can always ask for more bitz 😉 Seriously, though: Glad you like him!
February 4, 2015 at 13:00
Very nice, the top heavy look really adds to his hulking presence.
And as always, lovely painting!
February 4, 2015 at 15:23
Thanks, mate!
February 4, 2015 at 15:15
With this level of character and conversion with each model…they’ll never die on the tabletop. Everyone will feel bad just shooting at them!
February 4, 2015 at 15:24
Thanks a lot, Greg. However, I am speaking from painful experience when I say that a) they usually die like flies and b) nobody ever feels bad about shooting at them 😉 I still appreciate the kind words, though!
February 4, 2015 at 17:03
He’s stunning! Why the hell doesn’t Gw made the chaos termies on this way? This mini is really brutal by the general aspect. And the paintjob just add more of the effect! That “new” recruit is really a good choice in all terms. Keep the good work, Blood for the Blood God!
February 4, 2015 at 17:13
The whole conversion really hinges on the fact that those Heldrake armour plates make for excellent (chaos) Mk 1 pauldrons — apart from that, he’s almost a bog standard chaos Terminator Lord.
February 4, 2015 at 17:38
And it makes all!
February 4, 2015 at 18:23
That’s really an amazing figure. Well done.
February 4, 2015 at 23:55
Thanks, Odie! 🙂
February 4, 2015 at 18:28
I love Doomwall as much as the first day I laid eyes on him in gray. Astounding presence, effective conversion, and just enough Rogue Trader to keep us old dogs happy. Not a sour note in the entire project.
February 4, 2015 at 23:56
That is very nice of you to say — and it means a lot, especially coming from a perfectionist like yourself 😉
February 4, 2015 at 18:36
Okay those are just fuggin *excellent*.
February 4, 2015 at 23:57
Cheers, David! Glad you like them!
February 4, 2015 at 19:01
I am so jealous of the Chaos Terminator Lord kit. A) the lightning claws in it are awesome, and B) it’s so much more versatile than anything the loyalist marines have with regard to Terminators… I haven’t even tried starting on my Chapter Master yet because I don’t feel there’s anything that (within my level of skill) can pull off what I want to do with him XD
Truly inspiring work though!
February 4, 2015 at 23:59
Cheers, mate! There’s nothing preventing you from using at least some of the bitz on your loyalist Marines, you know? The lightning claws work great as somewhat pre-heresy-ish weapons on Marine commanders (I’ve used them on my Custodes Termies, for instance). As for loyalist options, I think the Deathwing Knights are really pretty interesting when it comes to building suitably ostentatious Astartes officers in Terminator armour — just sayin’…
February 9, 2015 at 16:36
I would agree with you there but, alas, no funds! I’m eyeballing the Puppetswar Ripper Engineer though. I think I’d put a GK style Terminator head on that and convert him a Storm Shield out of the shield from this – http://t0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRrE7eBxFhRfekictWA2AVeVno-odqC2RdJpNItl5dNLCc91thNag:ep.yimg.com/ay/yhst-128932958816907/2013-halo-mega-bloks-set-97166-forerunner-weapons-pack-26.jpg
If I ever get around to making him I’ll post photos on my blog. Did you ever see my Karlaen conversion, by the way?
February 4, 2015 at 22:32
Doomwall looks excellent as a stand alone model, but when he’s with his Brother Terminators he really comes to life. They’re so evocative, you can almost feel the barely suppressed rage emanating from them.
A nice piece of background on him as well, nice one.
February 5, 2015 at 00:00
Thanks a lot, Gary! I’ll be so happy once the entire retinue plus Lord Captain Lorimar has finally been finished — let’s see how long it takes… 😉
February 9, 2015 at 06:49
Fantastic looking model and character background! I love it!
Those shoulder guards go a long way in transforming that marine’s armor into Mk 1 Tactical Dreadnought armor. The reference to his original Legion the War Hounds is a great little detail. I also really like how you converted his lightning-claw mounted stormbolter out of bolt pistols (making it smaller and more manageable).
Very impressed!
February 9, 2015 at 13:54
Thanks a lot, Adam! I am really glad you like him! 🙂
February 10, 2015 at 15:00
I simply love that guy. What’s more to say?
February 10, 2015 at 19:41
Cheers, mate! 🙂
February 18, 2015 at 12:01
[…] 1 Chaos Lord in Terminator armour with Thunder Hammer and Lightning Claw (Brother Garron the Doomwal… […]
February 25, 2015 at 12:54
I really like this kit bash, as a 2nd ed purist the inclusion of a thunder hammer sucks (should have gone with the power maul) but I can understand why you used it.
February 25, 2015 at 16:27
Haha, cheers! I spent ages making up my mind about the weapon, to be honest, but in the end, there was just no other way — sorry! 😉
February 25, 2015 at 17:03
Yeah sorry mate, that sounded way harsher than it was intended to heh…. you and your post heresy weapons! 😛
January 18, 2016 at 12:01
[…] Read more about the Doomwall here. […]