Do you have a lot of Necron bits lying around like I did? You may have a beautiful conversion waiting for you right around the corner!
A few years back when the plastic Wraith models first came out I tinkered around with the parts for a little while. Until it just hit me, and I turned them upside down and created something new.
I liked to call it the Canoptek Scorpion!
Canoptek Scorpion Conversion
Of course, there’s no real Canoptek Scorpion with stats so I use them for my Spyder models.
You can, of course, use them for whatever really, however, their “footprint” is just a little too big to mount to a 40mm base for using as Wraiths.
Canoptek Scorpion Parts List
- Dark Eldar Talos Tail
- One Necron Canoptek Wraith Sprue
- Optional Necron Spyder Head
Building the Carapace
You can pretty much see what I did with this model in the picture above. I basically just reversed the curve of the Wraith model and made their “belly” the top of the model. I also made some baby scorpion models to use as scarabs out of some spare Necron parts I had lying around to go with whole Spyder counts-as theme I have in my army as well.
First off you need to cut down the two armor plates that normally go on the top of the model, as shown.
They need these cuts to be able to reverse their angle and go from curving around the back to curving around the front of the model.
Then, just start building the Wraith as normal attaching the sections of its torso together. As you can see, what is normally the “belly” of the Wraith is now the “top”.
I also started adding sets of legs at this point so the assembly would hold itself together as it got built up. This also helps to counterweight the tail as you attach it.
Next, you can add the armor plates that normally go on the back of the model to what is now the top of the model. If you cut them down carefully, they should fit right over what is now the top of the model as they are mirror images meant to go on the old top of the model (which is now the bottom).
Just keep building up the back of the model adding sections and armor plates. Here, I also added a spare Spyder head I had to the front of the model to check the proportions.
Attaching the Tail
Next, just clip the little nub off the Talos tail and glue it flush to the socket where the Wraith tail would normally go. By now, the glue from the legs should be dry and the model should be able to hold the weight of the tail.
Just plug and play the rest of the parts into the correct sockets as pictured above. Don’t forget to add the middle set of legs!
That’s pretty much it. You can play around with the angle of everything to simulate motion and such. But the basics of the assembly is done. I made a few with their claws opened wide, and some more in a guarded position like above.
Honestly, it seemed to take way more time just trimming and deflashing all the bits to make it, than actually assembling it!
Check out the entire How-To video for making this Canoptek Scorpion!
What do you think about the Canoptek Scorpion? Are you going to convert some Wraiths into these guys? What other Necron conversions have you done before? Let us know in the comments of our Facebook Hobby Group.
About the Author: Rob Baer
Rob Baer
Job Title: Founder, Publisher, & Managing Editor
Founded Spikey Bits in 2009
Socials: Rob Baer on Facebook and @catdaddymbg on X
Bio: Virginia restless, miniature painter & cat dad. He blames LEGOs for all this, as there was something about those little-colored blocks that started it all. Spikey Bits sprung from Rob staying motivated to hobby on his backlog of projects, while sharing his knowledge with others during the early blogging era.
LEGO maniac and scale model hobbyist in the 80s turned miniature wargamer and trading card player ever since. He’s played every edition of Warhammer 40k and Warhammer Fantasy (since 5th Edition), but Titans of all sizes will always be his favorite! It’s even rumored that his hobby vault rivals the Solemnance Galleries, containing rulebooks filled with lore from editions long past, ancient packs of black-bordered Magic Cards, and minatures made of pewter and resin.
