Conanesque: A Fantasy Warrior Kitbash (update 5: February 2020)

Stryker2011 wrote:I kind of like the "leaner" body myself. I think it looks better with the leaner Hemsworth sculpt.

I think I agree with you. Just wish TBLeague had not chosen this body to experiment with the ugly ankle extenders and the body had taller stature by itself.

Accuracy aside, I have to say I do like that leaner body with that head sculpt. Somehow, they just look really right together. Another really fun bash! You've got a great fantasy group. Makes me want to go read some Conan comics.

ReverendSpooky wrote:Accuracy aside, I have to say I do like that leaner body with that head sculpt.  Somehow, they just look really right together.  Another really fun bash!  You've got a great fantasy group.  Makes me want to go read some Conan comics.

Thank you very much, Adam (and I agree). Your words inspire me to do more, down the line.

These are so much fun. I like both the Conan and the 'Conanesque', lol. Also their fantasy warrior comrades are pretty awesome.  You used all the bits of armour and accessories in a very aesthetically pleasing way. Since the original items are not exactly historically accurate anyway, I agree with the others who have said that these are in many respects preferable to the Coomodel figures. 

It's also great to see Conan with 'real' hair, rather than sculpted or synthetic. Hope I can try out all your helpful tips on my own version at some point, as well.


ETA: Meant to ask...did you make those torcs on the Chris Hemsworth figure?

skywalkersaga wrote:These are so much fun. I like both the Conan and the 'Conanesque', lol. Also their fantasy warrior comrades are pretty awesome.  You used all the bits of armour and accessories in a very aesthetically pleasing way. Since the original items are not exactly historically accurate anyway, I agree with the others who have said that these are in many respects preferable to the Coomodel figures. 

It's also great to see Conan with 'real' hair, rather than sculpted or synthetic. Hope I can try out all your helpful tips on my own version at some point, as well.


ETA: Meant to ask...did you make those torcs on the Chris Hemsworth figure?

Thank you very much, glad you liked them! That's what I meant about recycling fantasy elements on pseudo-historical figures, and the CooModel fantasy Vikings are a treasure-trove of those (you've seen the ship review, HERE is the slightly older review of the actual CooModel Viking figures themselves). But of course, there are also pieces from other sets. One of the new Conan sets comes with "real" hair, too. If you don't pick it up or find it good enough, or make your own anyway, I'd love to see what you come up with. By the way, I think my archer could use a vambrace.

Yes, I did make these particular torques on the Chris "berserker," although they go back to my custom non-comic-book Thor (a couple of photos in the M35 mega-review HERE). Although there is twisted art wire, it tends to be (at least the type I have found) too high gauge (i.e., too thin) to work for sixth-scale torques. So I took a lower gauge (i.e., thicker) regular smooth circular-section wire and wrapped (winded? -- is that a word?) more delicate wire of the same type around it. Then I bent it into shape. Kinda hard to do when you are working with something this small, but with a little patience, you get decent results. By the way, you want even your thicker wire to be relatively soft and pliable -- not only so you could bend it into shape more easily, but also so you can open it up a bit and then closing it when attaching to wrists or biceps, etc (easier than always having to yank out hands).

I was recently asked whether some of CooModel's Viking gear would look right on the less bulky seamless bodies, so I tried it out on an M33, resulting in the following spontaneous kitbash, which is Conanesque in more ways than one. I think the result speaks for itself -- at least my interpretation of it is "kind of." Maybe he's an eager young warrior trying to follow in his dad/uncle/big bro's footsteps?









Although I think it looks ok overall, the vambraces and upper parts of the (two-part) boots are rather wide.

Additional reminder: while TBLeague ankle pegs do fit into the holes on these CooModel boots, they fit rather loosely. I advise using cut off pieces of plastic baggies (I used four layers) to jam between the hole and the peg to get a somewhat tighter fit. Even so, the figure could loose balance easily.

What do you think?

I can totally imagine him running joyfully in a montage, accompanied by his sidekicks and the Civilization music by Basil Poledouris, wearing a Jason Momoa grin, in search of mayhem, sex and riches glory, love and honor.

I lost track of all those Jason heads, this isn't the Hot Toys Aquajason you rooted?

Clothing and head look good in combination with that....super skinny, elf-like M33 body. It's a more 'realistic' feeling look somehow, compared to the pumped up archermachine you made.

And about the big shoes and armguards, do you think fur padding might help?

Thanks for that, Guv. I'm glad I passed on the vambraces and boots, after perusing your earlier link; and now that I see them in person, they definitely wouldn't have worked for the body I was intending to use. Still, he does look cool. I still think his Conan movie wasn't very good -- Arnold for the WIN!!! -- but as any other type of fantasy character, Momoa works here, despite the oversized of some of his accessories.

Rnold will always be the reference I guess, I was too quite disappointed by the recent remake... Still that character looks very cool and totally fitting the conan universe, I second the suggestion of adding pants or fur to fill in the gap on the upper part of the boots, and seeing the "strength" of the guy, may be some leather arm bands or wraps would be enough...

Very cool anyway! Now I want a Conan fix with plenty of warriors and warrioresses, let the blood cover the floor by Crom!!!

Dang those look great. Love all the details. Those are some tough looking warriors. Great job once again.

AFM

Ovy wrote:I can totally imagine him running joyfully in a montage, accompanied by his sidekicks and the Civilization music by Basil Poledouris, wearing a Jason Momoa grin, in search of mayhem, sex and riches glory, love and honor.

I lost track of all those Jason heads, this isn't the Hot Toys Aquajason you rooted?

Clothing and head look good in combination with that....super skinny, elf-like M33 body. It's a more 'realistic' feeling look somehow, compared to the pumped up archermachine you made.

And about the big shoes and armguards, do you think fur padding might help?

Thank you. Nice imagery. And of course perhaps he is running away from wolves...
Yes, it is the HT Aquaman head that I scalped and haired. First thing I've really done with it.

Super skinny? M33? It is just skinny for this type of clothing. Which has its benefits -- the clothing can fit relatively easily -- but the vambraces and upper boots are too wide. It is no problem to fill them in with wrapped cloth or something, but I think the point I was exploring is whether they would look right -- and they would still jut out well beyond the surface of the skin, more so than looks sensible.

Stryker2011 wrote:Thanks for that, Guv. I'm glad I passed on the vambraces and boots, after perusing your earlier link; and now that I see them in person, they definitely wouldn't have worked for the body I was intending to use. Still, he does look cool. I still think his Conan movie wasn't very good -- Arnold for the WIN!!! -- but as any other type of fantasy character, Momoa works here, despite the oversized of some of his accessories.

You are welcome and thank you. Ironically, Toy Anxiety just parted out that set again. I would have posted earlier, but we were without power for two days. Exactly how skinny a body are you planning to use? M32 (please don't say M31 LOL)? No, the Jason Momoa Conan movie wasn't all that great, but I also didn't think it was completely horrible -- perhaps because I expected to be disappointed. I have read or been told that the Conan stories were usually quite campy and silly, and that (for example) the second Arnie Conan movie was more in their spirit than the first (which I consider infinitely better). So perhaps Momoa's Conan movie falls in that category and suffers accordingly. So did the one with Kevin Sorbo, where they couldn't get Arnie to come back to play Conan and they renamed the character... the name escapes me... Krull something?

blackpool wrote:Rnold will always be the reference I guess, I was too quite disappointed by the recent remake... Still that character looks very cool and totally fitting the conan universe, I second the suggestion of adding pants or fur to fill in the gap on the upper part of the boots, and seeing the "strength" of the guy, may be some leather arm bands or wraps would be enough...

Very cool anyway! Now I want a Conan fix with plenty of warriors and warrioresses, let the blood cover the floor by Crom!!!

I agree that at this point Conan IS Arnold, and Arnold IS Conan (and the Terminator, and a few other things). Glad you liked it. I actually wanted to give him the CooModel Viking pants (which also work well as dirty modern pajama bottoms), but since the question was how do the vambraces and boots look on a slimmer body, I left him with his gambeson and below it a stylish loincloth that was part cloth, part fur. No, he wasn't going Commando! With the pants on, the boots would look much less bulky on the figure; the vambraces would probably still be a problem, unless combined with ("chain") mail or some other bulky outfit. Arm bands a possibility for the next upgrade.

Isn't there supposed to be an upcoming Conan movie? With an old Conan and maybe a young son trying to match his father's glory? I hope Chris Pratt plays the son. LOL

actionfiguremovies2 wrote:Dang those look great. Love all the details. Those are some tough looking warriors. Great job once again. AFM

Thank you very much! You are very kind, especially considering these are essentially various combinations based mostly on the two outfits that came as part of this one set. But I do think they have potential, if I stick to them and do more with them.

You’re thinking of Kull (with Kevin Sorbo), which is actually a different Robert E Howard character set in the age of Atlantis. Similar character to Howard’s Conan.

Stryker2011 wrote:You’re thinking of Kull (with Kevin Sorbo), which is actually a different Robert E Howard character set in the age of Atlantis. Similar character to Howard’s Conan.

Yes, that was the one. I wasn't sure it was a different character, but it makes good sense -- maybe the point is they wanted to make another Conan film, couldn't, and so went with a different character (not just name) altogether, albeit from the same universe/author.

Is Krull the guy from that other medieval-ish movie with the movable castle/alien/monster and laser-shooting minions?

GubernatorFan wrote:

Stryker2011 wrote:You’re thinking of Kull (with Kevin Sorbo), which is actually a different Robert E Howard character set in the age of Atlantis. Similar character to Howard’s Conan.

Yes, that was the one. I wasn't sure it was a different character, but it makes good sense -- maybe the point is they wanted to make another Conan film, couldn't, and so went with a different character (not just name) altogether, albeit from the same universe/author.

Is Krull the guy from that other medieval-ish movie with the movable castle/alien/monster and laser-shooting minions?

Yep. Krull is that one with the moving castle — a mix of Sci-FI and Fantasy.

GubernatorFan wrote:[quote=Thank you very much! You are very kind, especially considering these are essentially various combinations based mostly on the two outfits that came as part of this one set. But I do think they have potential, if I stick to them and do more with them.

There ain't nothing wrong with letting the inspiration take you to multiple options. I say run with it my friend.

I'm mentally working on the Ares figure to suit my likes for the character. I'll post picture as always. Keep up the good work.

Coo Model needs to make more Vikings, but sets instead of boxed figures.

actionfiguremovies2 wrote:There ain't nothing wrong with letting the inspiration take you to multiple options. I say run with it my friend.

I'm mentally working on the Ares figure to suit my likes for the character. I'll post picture as always. Keep up the good work.

Thank you for the encouragement. And I can't wait to see what you do next.

MerylAkiba wrote:Coo Model needs to make more Vikings, but sets instead of boxed figures.

I see what you mean, and agree. The boxed figures set offered so much that could be put to good use in customs and kitbashes, that lower-priced sets containing this type of things would be very welcome indeed. Still, I've got to say that as much as I would have preferred my Vikings historically accurate, the boxed set was very cool in itself, too.

Looks great! I actually like the look of the character a lot. It's funny that the M33 would look skinny in the outfit, since it's actually pretty jacked. I guess we're used to all our fantasy characters as M34 and M35 hulks. I personally think this totally works here.

The rooted hair looks gorgeous, but I have to say, what made you decide to leave part of it sculpted? It looks better than most cases I've seen combining the 2, but I do think it'd look even better fully rooted or wigged.

And I know it's a controversial statement, but I actually think Momoa was the better Conan (although the original Arnold one was a FAR superior movie). Conan is a really interesting character as Howard wrote him. He's extremely smart, but since he's not educated or civilized, he's always looked down on or underestimated by "civilized" men. Something about Momoa's performance just nailed it, and I thought he really got Conan's personality. It's such a shame it was squandered on such a lackluster film.

On the other hand, the original Conan movie is so brilliant. I re-watched it recently, and was struck by just how beautifully shot it is. All of the dialogue is incredible, and I think it's a way smarter movie than it gets credit for.

Also, huge points for bringing up Krull, which is a fantastic flick in it's own right and too often overlooked.

ReverendSpooky wrote:Looks great!  I actually like the look of the character a lot.  It's funny that the M33 would look skinny in the outfit, since it's actually pretty jacked.  I guess we're used to all our fantasy characters as M34 and M35 hulks.  I personally think this totally works here.

The rooted hair looks gorgeous, but I have to say, what made you decide to leave part of it sculpted?  It looks better than most cases I've seen combining the 2, but I do think it'd look even better fully rooted or wigged.

And I know it's a controversial statement, but I actually think Momoa was the better Conan (although the original Arnold one was a FAR superior movie).  Conan is a really interesting character as Howard wrote him.  He's extremely smart, but since he's not educated or civilized, he's always looked down on or underestimated by "civilized" men.  Something about Momoa's performance just nailed it, and I thought he really got Conan's personality.  It's such a shame it was squandered on such a lackluster film.

On the other hand, the original Conan movie is so brilliant.  I re-watched it recently, and was struck by just how beautifully shot it is.  All of the dialogue is incredible, and I think it's a way smarter movie than it gets credit for.

Also, huge points for bringing up Krull, which is a fantastic flick in it's own right and too often overlooked.

First of all, I just realized I hadn't commented here, and wanted to say that I like what you did with him, GF!  Though if it were me I'd probably have left him shirtless...for reasons.

Secondly, I completely agree with you, Rev, that while the first Arnie movie is a CLASSIC and is by far the better film, that the Jason Momoa Conan was probably a bit closer to the Robert E. Howard version of the character. Both in terms of physical features, and characterization as you noted. I'm glad at least I was not alone in thinking that. 

You mentioned the dialogue and cinematography in the original Conan movie, and yes, completely agree. The score/soundtrack is also pretty iconic. 

Re: Coomodel Vikings, I'm with GF on that one.... I really can't muster any enthusiasm for their versions. Give me historically accurate ones any day! : )

ReverendSpooky wrote:Looks great!  I actually like the look of the character a lot.  It's funny that the M33 would look skinny in the outfit, since it's actually pretty jacked.  I guess we're used to all our fantasy characters as M34 and M35 hulks.  I personally think this totally works here.

The rooted hair looks gorgeous, but I have to say, what made you decide to leave part of it sculpted?  It looks better than most cases I've seen combining the 2, but I do think it'd look even better fully rooted or wigged.

And I know it's a controversial statement, but I actually think Momoa was the better Conan (although the original Arnold one was a FAR superior movie).  Conan is a really interesting character as Howard wrote him.  He's extremely smart, but since he's not educated or civilized, he's always looked down on or underestimated by "civilized" men.  Something about Momoa's performance just nailed it, and I thought he really got Conan's personality.  It's such a shame it was squandered on such a lackluster film.

On the other hand, the original Conan movie is so brilliant.  I re-watched it recently, and was struck by just how beautifully shot it is.  All of the dialogue is incredible, and I think it's a way smarter movie than it gets credit for.

Also, huge points for bringing up Krull, which is a fantastic flick in it's own right and too often overlooked.

Thank you very much. I agree that it works pretty well, even if not quite perfectly (hence the rationalization about him trying to fill someone else's shoes -- and vambraces); let's not forget it is a test.

The forehead hairline is a difficult transition point even for professional action figure makers (look at Asmus' Lord of the Rings figures), and I don't trust myself to handle it perfectly. So I decided to leave a bit of the sculpted locks in that area, and since they work well enough, I left them in. If the contrast was greater, I would have removed them. I made the same choice with the more recently re-haired KP Arnold/Conan head sculpt, although there the sculpted hair is more covered by the "real" hair. (see here: https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2126-converting-arnold-schwarzenegger-kp-conan-head )

Momoa worked very well for this type of character visually, but I was long sold on Arnold as Conan (and never knew Conan in any other form); moreover, technically Arnold's features might be more plausible for a Cimmerian. At any rate, I didn't think the Momoa film was quite as bad as everyone else seems to think it was. But for all of its strangeness, the first Conan movie was a bit of a masterpiece (not least because of the music).

Yep, Krull was a fun, strange film. I wish there were more like it. And can I mention the (original) Beastmaster?

skywalkersaga wrote:First of all, I just realized I hadn't commented here, and wanted to say that I like what you did with him, GF!  Though if it were me I'd probably have left him shirtless...for reasons.

Secondly, I completely agree with you, Rev, that while the first Arnie movie is a CLASSIC and is by far the better film, that the Jason Momoa Conan was probably a bit closer to the Robert E. Howard version of the character. Both in terms of physical features, and characterization as you noted. I'm glad at least I was not alone in thinking that. 

You mentioned the dialogue and cinematography in the original Conan movie, and yes, completely agree. The score/soundtrack is also pretty iconic. 

Re: Coomodel Vikings, I'm with GF on that one.... I really can't muster any enthusiasm for their versions. Give me historically accurate ones any day! : )

Thank you very much.

LOL, if I bring you shirtless Momoa, will you be ok with it being sans tattoos?

Funny that such clumsy dialogue should be so fitting, but you're right about the first Conan movie on all counts.

Coomodel's Vikings are a remarkable set, and a treasure-throve for kitbashers, though one would wish there were some more realistic pieces too.

GubernatorFan wrote:


LOL, if I bring you shirtless Momoa, will you be ok with it being sans tattoos?

Funny that such clumsy dialogue should be so fitting, but you're right about the first Conan movie on all counts.

Coomodel's Vikings are a remarkable set, and a treasure-throve for kitbashers, though one would wish there were some more realistic pieces too.

 
Ha, I suppose that would be a bearable sacrfice.  

And apologies if I was seeming overly dismissive of the Coomodel set, I just mean that I could not muster enthusiasm for it as something Viking-related. But yeah, those do seem quite perfect for fantasy kitbashes for sure. And you've utilized them well so far. : )

ETA: Beastmaster is another fun one!

skywalkersaga wrote:Secondly, I completely agree with you, Rev, that while the first Arnie movie is a CLASSIC and is by far the better film, that the Jason Momoa Conan was probably a bit closer to the Robert E. Howard version of the character. Both in terms of physical features, and characterization as you noted. I'm glad at least I was not alone in thinking that. 

You mentioned the dialogue and cinematography in the original Conan movie, and yes, completely agree. The score/soundtrack is also pretty iconic. 

So glad to hear you're on my side on this one.  I think he must have read a bunch of the original stories when he got the part, because he just got it.  And you're right, really looked the part.  I think it's a real tragedy that the film was so bad, because we'll never get to see him reprise the role, and I think that's a real shame.  

And yeah, I had totally forgotten to mention how incredible the soundtrack was as well!  It really is a perfect film in it's own right.  And I do think Arnold is great in it.  

GubernatorFan wrote:Thank you very much. I agree that it works pretty well, even if not quite perfectly (hence the rationalization about him trying to fill someone else's shoes -- and vambraces); let's not forget it is a test.

The forehead hairline is a difficult transition point even for professional action figure makers (look at Asmus' Lord of the Rings figures), and I don't trust myself to handle it perfectly. So I decided to leave a bit of the sculpted locks in that area, and since they work well enough, I left them in. If the contrast was greater, I would have removed them. I made the same choice with the more recently re-haired KP Arnold/Conan head sculpt, although there the sculpted hair is more covered by the "real" hair. (see here: https://onesixthfigures.forumotion.com/t2126-converting-arnold-schwarzenegger-kp-conan-head )

Momoa worked very well for this type of character visually, but I was long sold on Arnold as Conan (and never knew Conan in any other form); moreover, technically Arnold's features might be more plausible for a Cimmerian. At any rate, I didn't think the Momoa film was quite as bad as everyone else seems to think it was. But for all of its strangeness, the first Conan movie was a bit of a masterpiece (not least because of the music).

Yep, Krull was a fun, strange film. I wish there were more like it. And can I mention the (original) Beastmaster?

You can ALWAYS mention Beastmaster.  I remember LOVING that movie so much as a kid, but have only vague memories of it today.  May need to re-watch too.

And I don't think any rationalization is necessary.  I was actually making the point that the outfit look really great on him, and it's so odd that we would even think otherwise, that the gigantic M34 or M35 would be the standard.  Everything looks like it fits as it should.  I dig the whole set up a lot, and think he looks like a finished figure, even if he is just a test.

I agree that getting the front hairline right is tricky.  I had to stare at the Conan head for a long time before U could even see the plastic hair that was combed over.  I've got a few tricks I use when I wig a head to try to get that front part right, but it's always the most difficult part.  I didn't even notice the plastic part here at first, and it definitely works.  It's just something I can be fanatical about.  

And I totally get how Arnold is the definitive Conan for most people.  And honestly, I think he's actually fantastic in the movie.  I was just so surprised when seeing Momoa play the role just how much he inhabited the role, as I'd pictured it reading Howard's stories and a lot of the comics more closely based on them.  So many of the  more subtle traits and his charisma just came through so perfectly.  That scene where he gets captured on purpose, and the moment where he smiles and lets them know he's exactly where he wanted to be, is so perfectly Conan, and I'd love to have seen him in the role, in a film that was anywhere near the caliber of the original.  

GubernatorFan wrote:Funny that such clumsy dialogue should be so fitting, but you're right about the first Conan movie on all counts.

There's so much of the dialogue I just loved.  I think both Conan and Subotai are both foreigners in the place where this takes place, and I think they way they speak, accents and all, really fit.  And any of the exchanges between them are just perfect.  My favorite moment is still

"Crom, I have never prayed to you before. I have no tongue for it. No one, not even you, will remember if we were good men or bad. Why we fought, or why we died. All that matters is that two stood against many. That's what's important! Valor pleases you, Crom... so grant me one request. Grant me revenge! And if you do not listen, then to HELL with you!"

(It should be no secret that I drew some inspiration from Crom for Abarath and Marrow's relationship to him)

or Subotai referring to civilization as "ancient & wicked."  It's just so good.

I just couldn't resist...

Also, someone wanted him shirtless...

Also very cool. You really find many uses for those two Metal Vikings' equipment.

And if he was one of the Postapocalyptic Pacific Shell People, they would call him Jason Moana.

Oooooooooooooooooooooohhhhhh.

Thank you. ;D

That entire ensemble looks great on him. Nicely done, Guv.

Ovy wrote:Also very cool. You really find many uses for those two Metal Vikings' equipment.

And if he was one of the Postapocalyptic Pacific Shell People, they would call him Jason Moana.

Jason Moana sounds like a fun idea. There is less Vikings equipment on that last one, see below.

skywalkersaga wrote:Oooooooooooooooooooooohhhhhh. Thank you. ;D

You are welcome. The things I do for you! I hope the hubbster doesn't get the wrong idea.

Stryker2011 wrote:That entire ensemble looks great on him. Nicely done, Guv.

Thank you very much. So this ensamble, in case you are interested in any of the pieces is as follows:
* four belts, furry loin cloth, axe, horn, and knife from CooModel Vikings;
* sandals/boots, vambraces, dagger from TBLeague's second Hercules (the one with the lion's head);
* sword is a Justice League key chain from eBay (shazzdan was showcasing these);
* the pants are from one of the recent KP Roman figures;
* the shoulder fur is Spanish rabbit from Hobby Lobby

Thanks for the breakdown, Guv. Very useful. Did you make the leg wraps and vambraces?