Written by In this post i want to share my thoughts and efforts with the Tyranid Tervigon. For the most part i really like the model, when it first came out it was cool to see how much larger it was than the go to heavy hitter for the ‘Nids, the Carnifex.
But there was also something else i noticed. This model was cool, but i found the method of spawning Termagants clumsy and weird. I was happy with the artwork, but i didnt really like how it was executed on the model. This then led me to rethink this whole mechanism for spawning.
Ok, i get that these creatures lead a temporary existence, so they dont really need to be able to do what they do for that long before being re-absorbed into the hive. However, these things are bioengineered to do specific things and do them well. So it seems odd to me that the best way the Hive could come up with the fir Tervigon to birth Termagants would be for them to just bust out of its chest.
Maybe its because that seems faster and that suits the sudden battlefield reinforcements better, but it still seemed too messy to me. So i wanted a Tervigon with a purpose built opening for allowing its spawn to run free. Altering the existing hole at the front runs the risk of giving the Tervigon some sort of nightmarish front bum hole or xeno vagina, so i decided to try and go classic ovipositor at the back.
Its impossible to reference Aliens too much.
The Tervigon has such long back legs there is a load of room back there. I used some wired to form a roughly undersized cage to build on, bulked it out with milliput and then used greenstuff to finish it off.
Then to give it a bit more context and life i thought it would be cool to add some birthed termagaunts. This way despite the new design looking less efficient at flinging number at the enemy, i can make it look a bit quicker.
The trouble is termagaunts have a really ridged shape and are likely to be a pain in the ass to put into the situation. Fortunatly for me and mt various ebay purchases, i had some spares that might do the trick. I didnt have much room under the ovipositor, but a gimpy, previous generation Termagant seemed to fit nicely, complete with newborn foetal position. It doesnt look like the modern Termagants but i had a plan for that.
Then i wanted another one running off after having just popped out. To really give it the feeling of being somewhere between the gimpy ‘gant and a fully weaponised, horizontal, bug chucker… I went with a Hormagant body, and just used the termagant arms and head.
After some painting i just had to add some goop with a glue gun and gave that a green wash.
I hope you like it, i’m happy with it. If you got this far then please leave a comment with your opinions or ideas. thanks!
~Pandora’s Bitz Box~
Painting In The Dark 