What’s big and mean and green all over? No, this is not a snappy pun, it’s our custom converted Gargantuan Squiggoth of course!!!!
We’ve done our fair share of squiggoths over the years, including this insane Rock Band squiggoth for a most appreciative client. Regardless of which we learned one thing . . . people love squiggoths!
Squiggoths are always fun because they’re just a kit bashing dream! Since orks like to use anything they can find, I like to follow the same approach when building an ork monstrosity such as this! Lots of people look at this thing and think . . . ‘That’s just a toy dinosaur, it’s worthless!!!’. Well, let’s break it down and see if you agree.
To start with I select a plastic Triceratops kit, either small, or really big.
I assemble the kit as intended, but instead of mounting the horns to the head plate, I use them as tusks for the lower jawline. Strong epoxy and some basic green stuffing skills are all it really takes to get this rolling.
For the howdah, I usually just pilfer my bits box for whatever I can find. In this case, it was a few robogear kits, a spare ninja turtles battle wagon shield plate, some ork bits from the battlewagon sprue, some more robogear plating to cover the basic assembly.
You’ll also need some spare bits (I used necron chassis bits) to cover the gaps, some plastic card, plenty of glue, some chain of varying sizes, and spares from an Aegis line or Bastion set from the 40k line. Even if you dont’ have all that, the beauty of the model is you can build it out of spares from just about anything you have lying around! I just like to use manufacturers models where I can, because they save me time, and time is $$$.
As far as the actual construction goes, the most important thing AND I CANNOT STRESS THIS ENOUGH is to mount some sort of level, plate to the squiggoths back to work off of. Think of it like a stable platform to work from. It doesn’t have to be use. I used a few pieces of plastic cityfight tiling to get it going. Most serious hobbyists have a piece to two to spare, and it gives you a firm, stable platform to build off of. From there, I start adding decking until I get the platform to the size I like, just big enough to go over the squiggoths haunches.
From here, it’s just a matter of taste. I like to build the howdah first using anything I can find. Then I add the turrets and cannons, as well as little details. For the leg guards I cut up the deathroller and use the chain to make it appear to be chained on to the Squiggoths legs. I use the Aegis line bits to cover the squiggoths massive joints, and to give a little extra armor. After all, Orks pilfer anything they can get right?
Size wise this guy is about 12″ long putting it about 2/3 of the way as large as the biggest squiggoth I ever build and about twice as big as the little squiggoth. That’s a 12″ wooden base it’s standing on, if that gives you a point of reference.
Sound like a lot of work? It is! Fortunately, you can buy it for about half of what Forge World charges. Just check out the listing before its gone!!!
We are conversion artists for hire! Contact us at calebfilm@yahoo.com if you are interested in setting up a commission! And until then PUT YOUR MINIS WHERE YOUR MOUTH IS!!
Caleb, WMG
About the Author: Caleb Dillon
