Necromunda Killer bird dinosaurs from SPACE!

[Aulenback]

Ahoy all.

Just aiming to build a single thread to have access to an easy run through assorted Kroot models and conversions specifically intended for use in the following games:

Shadow War: Armageddon, using Kroot Kill Team rules
GorkaMorka, using Mutie Raiders rules
ORB Necromunda, using SW:A Kroot Kill Team rules for an Outlaw gang
Mordheim, as models among a Beastmen Raiders warband
N23 using Venators rules.

Some in process shots [to show conversion pieces], some finished shots [to show off some moderate success], in variety.

Album hosting the lot [and some more images of not-very-good photo quality] can be found at
https://yaktribe.games/community/media/albums/kroot-shadow-war-armageddon.880/

EDIT: This thread now also includes other GorkaMorka content. Not renaming. Cannibal space chickens for the win.

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot SW:A team

• Aulenback
• May 3, 2018

^ An initial quick group shot of the more-or-less complete starting Kroot gang for use with either Shadow War: Armageddon or Necromunda ORB rules as Outlanders. Lots of packs, satchels, pouches, and line added on the backs of most models, and some camo cloth [greys] on many as well.

Kroot GorkaMorka mob

• Aulenback
• May 3, 2018

^ An initial quick group shot of the mostly-but-not-quite finished starting Kroot mob for GorkaMorka rules, as Mutie Raiders. Converted combining Kroot infantry, Krootox Riders, and Saurus Cold One Riders. And likewise, lots of pouches, bundles, satchels, and gear. And meat. Lots of meat.

 

[Ben_S]

Those two pics seem to be the same...

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• Apr 28, 2018

Krootox for Ash Wastes or GorkaMorka

^ Work in progress shot of the dismounted-and-aiming-from-shelter Krootox Rider from the GorkaMorka "counts as Mutie Raiders" mob. The Krootox work as the equivalent of Unks. The Krootox in the mob get more heavily loaded down with gear made with bits ranging from Kroot sprue extras, through Lizardman sprue extras, through Chaos Space Marine tabard extras, and more.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• Apr 28, 2018

Kroot played as Muties for Ash Wastes or GorkaMorka settings

^ Work in progress shot of the lead rider from the GorkaMorka "counts as Mutie Raiders" mob. The Knarloc-lizard-riding leader works as the equivalent of the Seeker. The Knarloc-dino-riders are less heavily encumbered than the Krootox, with more of their extras being skulls taken as trophies.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• Apr 28, 2018

Kroot played as Muties for Ash Wastes or GorkaMorka settings.

^ Work in progress shot of the "Shaper" from the GorkaMorka "counts as Mutie Raiders" mob. The gun weapon comes from a WHFB Empire gunner.

Those two pics seem to be the same...

Edited and fixed link.

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Completed Shaper from the counts as Mutie Raiders mob, front. Table-ready-but-not-finished paint job.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Completed Shaper from the counts as Mutie Raiders mob, back. Table-ready-but-not-finished paint job.

Kroot Walker for Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 30, 2018

^ Work in progress pillaged Kroot Walker for Ash Wastes Necromunda.

Kroot Walker for Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 30, 2018

^ Table ready but not final pillaged Kroot Walker for Ash Wastes Necromunda. Industrial cargo walkers converted from Imperial Guard Sentinels. Also, apparently, dusty. Looks like these don't get a lot of play.

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Melee Krootox from SW:A or Necromunda Outlanders Kroot gang. Also useable for Tzeentch-themed Beastmen Raiders Mordheim warband as Tzeentchi Minotaur. Accompanied by one of several available Kroothounds.

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Same, from the reverse.

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Table ready but not finished Krootox, rider dismounted and firing from shelter, left profile, showing some of the spare gear loaded onto the Krootox.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Table ready but not finished Krootox, rider dismounted and firing from shelter, right profile, showing the long gun braced against cargo.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Table ready but not finished "lead hunter" on Knarloc showing long spear and chain weapon.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Another look at the "lead hunter," on Knarloc, from the back.

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Kroot for SW:A and Necromunda Outlanders (ORB) or N17 Venator gang. Gang leader (Shaper) and markskroot with cameoline and assorted gear.

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Same pair, from the reverse.

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Two kroot gangers, left is an assault kroot with bladed rifle, right is hunting rifle with cameoline cover.

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Same two from the reverse.

All table ready, but painting not yet finished.

 

[Zeebogie]

man your Krootox dudes and other riders would be a sick "counts as" Mutie raiders very nice

 

[Pie Vendor]

I like the brown to brown color scheme, very thematic.

 

[Aulenback]

"counts as" Mutie raiders

Yes, and for a brief detour, here is what that looks like on paper - a rewriting of Mutie Raiders rules for a Kroot mob for Gorkamorka:
https://drive.google.com/open?id=0B9LgmisdBxx7ODBPT2hWTDdkMEE

[The Mutie Raiders rules, fluff rewritten and models/equipment renamed to suit a Kroot-in-the-GorkaMorka-Wastes mob. Not funtionally any different from Mutie Raiders, but a more explicit list to aid with "counts as," and a bit of background to excuse them as Kroot from the desert wastes, rather than as alternate models Muties.]

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Kroot "ganger" and Kroot Hound. The colour scheme across the lot, both those intended as "counts as Mutie Raiders," and those intended for SW:A/Necromunda, is on the whole a mix of browns and greys for most things, with a mix of metallics for bright spot colours. The intent [and hopefully moderate success] is to give the impression of something that would blend in easily in the deserts or Ash Wastes, or even in the machineries of the Underhive. Generations and generations of natural camouflage.

All of them run with the Kroot design intent of carrying loads of gear tied on to straps - though with much pillaging of various lines [and even non-GW bits] for that gear, ranging from copious use of Lizardman bits for decoration, and elements ranging from GW Undead extras through Kharadron widgets and gewgaws.

Kroot in the Underhive

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Same pair, opposite facing.

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot Mordheim beastmen

• Aulenback
• Jun 15, 2018

Melee equipped Kroot suitable for Mordheim Tzeentch Beastmen or for Necromunda, but not SW:A.

^ Melee-equipped Kroot suitable for Mordheim beastmen raiders warband, also for Necromunda, but not SW:A. Less gear carried on these models as well, partly for a looser, 'melee ready' look, partly because Mordheim beastmen models seem to carry less gear around with them (plus, the earlier melee krootox can be the 'minotaur' pack animal for the warband).

Kroot Mordheim Tzeentch Beastmen

• Aulenback
• Jun 15, 2018

Melee-equipped Kroot suitable for Mordheim Beastmen Raiders, or for Necromunda (but not SW:A).

^ The same, with a slightly different angle to show the difference in the two poses, one striking, one between combats.

Kroot Mordheim Tzeentch Beastmen

• Aulenback
• Jun 15, 2018

Melee-equipped Kroot suitable for Mordheim Beastmen Raiders, or for Necromunda (but not SW:A).

^ Less encumbered does not mean completely unencumbered. Colour scheme chosen to blend well enough with the others (GM, NM, SW:A), but brighter at the crest to give just a touch of Tzaangor flair. Usefully, both the lizardmen saurus and the Kroot have four digits on each hand.

 

[Ben_S]

Did you find left-handed Saurus weapons or convert those?

 

[Aulenback]

Did you find left-handed Saurus weapons or convert those?

Converted from the drummer arm. The mounted saurus kit has only a couple of shieldless left arms, both holding drumsticks. Easy to convert.

 

[Aulenback]

A bit of inspirational fluff: a former Hive-ganger meets a Kroot on the streets of a backwater agri-world:

'Greechaahl,' something shrieked, an inhuman scream that raised the hairs on the back of my neck, even under those conditions. My assailants hesitated, and I rolled clear, in time to see the largest of them yanked back by sheer brute force.
For a moment I thought I was hallucinating, but the pain in my ribs was all too real. A face dominated by a large hooked beak was gazing down at me, surmounted by a crest of quills that had been dyed or painted in some elaborate pattern, and hot, charnel breath washed across my face, making me gag.

I eyed my rescuer a little apprehensively. He (or she - with kroot it's impossible to tell, and only another kroot would care anyway) was slightly taller than I was, and still looked pretty intimidating. They're tough enough to take on an ork in hand-to-hand combat, and I, for one, wouldn't be betting on the greenskin, but if it wanted me dead, it would only have had to wait a few moments. I retrieved my fallen laspistol anyway, and tried to get my breath back.

'I have the honour to be Gorok, of the Clan Tcha,' the creature said. 'I am kroot.'

Well, you're probably thinking I'm pretty dense not to have recognised Gorok straight away, but you should bear all the circumstances in mind. It was dark, we'd just been in the middle of a firefight, and why in the galaxy should I have expected him to be there in the first place? Besides, unless you're very close to them, kroot look remarkably alike. At least with orks you've got the scars to help tell them apart, in the unlikely event that you'd ever have to.

Then, to my even greater surprise, Gorok spat the gobbet of meat out, and I was reminded of the similar thing we'd seen before. He rattled off something in his native tongue, and the other kroot dropped their potential snacks too.
'What in the Emperor's name was all that about?' I whispered to Amberley, but she just shrugged.
'Sorry, I don't speak kroot.' Gorok's hearing must have been preternaturally acute, though, at least by human standards, because he answered me.
'Tainted, like the others.' He made a sound I took to be indicative of disgust.
'Tainted, how?' Amberley asked. Gorok spread his hands, a curiously human gesture for an alien, which I assumed he'd picked up from whoever had taught him Gothic.
'It is the.' He lapsed into kroot for a few whistles and clicks. 'There's no exact equivalent in your tongue which I know. The twisted molecules which replicate.'
'The genes? DNA?' Amberley asked. Gorok cocked his head on one side, apparently considering it, and asked one of the tau a question in that language. 'Something similar,' he said at last. 'The tau know of it too, but not as we do.'
'You're trying to tell me you can taste their DNA?' I asked incredulously. Gorok cocked his head again.
'Not exactly. As you lack the ability, it would be like describing colour to a blind man. But I am a shaper, and I can perceive such things.'

'There are sentries.' Amberley translated quietly. 'The kroot will deal with them.'
'But how can they see?' Velade asked, confusion obvious even in the undertone.
'We don't have to,' Gorok assured her, and a swirl of displaced air at my elbow told me he was gone. With my eyes now adjusted to the darkness, I could see three faint shadows against the faint light in the distance, and abruptly, they vanished.
A moment later there were a few muffled cries abruptly cut off, the sounds of a scuffle, and the unmistakeable crack of snapping bone. Then the silence descended again, to be broken by a muffled whisper [...]

The Sourblood tore another crimson strip from the carcass of the flat-face called and crammed it into his beak, savouring the pungent flavour. After the poor fare this planet had served up, such flesh was intoxicating! Worlds shaped the taste of their meat and this creature had been spawned on a vibrant, full-blooded planet – one not unlike Ujurakh’s own home world. As he chewed on the meat it rendered up fleeting impressions of wet green heat and red fury. He hadn’t tasted the like for many seasons! There had been a time when he had always fed well, travelling from one battleground to another with his kindred, trading their might for pay and flesh, but then the Empty One had come with false bargains and forbidden meat…

Warp-kissed flesh, tender, terrible and irresistible with promised displeasure!

Ujurakh shuddered at the memory of fragrant coral flesh and delicate, deadly pincers. Possessed, the Empty One had called the twisted, drooling captive he’d offered the Shaper. The sacrifice had shrieked in ecstasy when Ujurakh carved it open, then moaned in dissonant harmony while he glutted himself on its willing meat, enslaved by a hunger beyond anything he’d known before. Its essence had flooded his palate with myriad rival passions as he fought to unwind its truths and thread them into his own weave, but it was like trying to catch the lightning with his talons or extinguish the sun with his breath!

Too many possibilities entwined within infinite impossible tangles…

The Empty One had waited until Ujurakh collapsed, overwhelmed by the cacophony of sensations. Then he had summoned the kroot’s kindred and denounced their Shaper as a Sourblood, a degenerate who would taint their bloodline to sate his base cravings. They had called for his life then, but the Empty One had bought it from them and taken Ujurakh as his slave, burying his voice deep inside the Shaper’s skull and binding him to an invisible purpose that had carried them across countless worlds. Now, for the first time in so very long, Ujurakh could taste the joys of his old life.

 

[Aulenback]

Another couple of knarloc rider "counts as Mutie Raiders snagas" in process:

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

^ Kroot 'fast knarloc' rider for "counts as Mutie Raiders" mob. Needs more "gear," more bits and bobs and gewgaws to be mounted around the saddle. The "snaga" fast knarlocs are loaded up with far less extras than most of the "unk" krootox, but still carry hopefully a respectable amount for a long-range patrol.

Ash Wastes Kroot

• Aulenback
• Jun 15, 2018

Kroot Knarloc rider suitable for Counts As Mutie Raiders mob.

Ash Wastes Kroot

• Aulenback
• Jun 15, 2018

Kroot Knarloc rider suitable for Counts As Mutie Raiders mob. Unfinished.

^ Another "fast knarloc" for the Mutie Raiders counts-as mob, also in process of painting. The hand weapons [rough stone axe and finished sword] are from a Rackham model. The water canteen is from a WWII soldiers' accessories sprue, a decade and a half ago now [company not remembered]. A fair scattering of the bags and satchels and such come from that sprue of ... well, of bags and satchels and pouches and such.

 

[Aulenback]

And a bit more inspirational text regarding Kroot "settlements" and Kroot on the move, from the 40KRPG books:

Kroot colonies tend to be impermanent, even given the limited opportunities such efforts provide. The goal of these settlements is not to put down roots or claim land, but to hunt and consume the local fauna until the Shapers in charge of the colony have mastered their gifts. This is a task
that can last for generations, and a number of Kroot hunting lodges throughout the Expanse have been in continuous use for centuries. Nevertheless, the Kindred who hold the colony consider their tenancy and claim to be temporary, and look at the idea of permanently settling a world with contempt. Some Rogue Traders have thought this attitude to mean that the Kroot would not defend their holdings, only to find their armies added to the colony’s diet.
The goal of any Kroot presence on a world is to gain in strength, and they choose their prey carefully.

In the field, small groups of Kroot act in unison under the leadership of a Shaper, without need for a cumbersome command structure or communications gear. To human ears, the Kroot language sounds like nothing more than a series of glottal hisses, clicks, and whistles, easily mistaken for the calls of birds or other fauna. Moreover, it is postulated that Kroot Shapers are able to silently issue basic commands by secreting pheromones, which are instantly detectable by the sensitive olfactory receptors and sensory ganglia of other, nearby Kroot.

Knarlocs are most often used for scouting and hunting, as the large creatures are easily able to negotiate even the roughest terrain, from dense forests to war-torn urban jungles. They are also remarkably stealthy for their hulking size, able to move with cat-like silence, and clever enough to use cover and concealment wherever possible.
Some Kindreds, such as the Bonegnashers and Oathbreakers, use their Knarlocs as heavy cavalry, a shock force to crash into and roll over opposing units with sudden, irresistible charges, often coming from concealed positions on the enemy’s flanks. Others, in particular the Coldfire Kindred, tend to fight as dragoons or mounted infantry, using their Knarlocs to quickly gain a positional advantage and dismounting to fire on the enemy, sometimes even using their mount’s large forms as cover.

 

[Aulenback]

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

Work in progress

^ Yet another "Unk" Krootox rider, in process of initial base-coat and bulk-colour painting, and not yet much loaded down with extras. Banner pole with skull comes from Lizardman Saurus cavalry sprue.

Kroot in the Ash Wastes

• Aulenback
• May 27, 2018

Work in progress

^ Opposite shoulder view of the same, showing use of Chaos Space Marine "loincloth" extras for use as hanging and strapped-on gear.

Unlike the other Krootox, this one is pretty close to "straight as intended," with little actual conversion, beyond the addition of some extra supplies and such carried.

 

[Aulenback]

Intentions for paint scheme:

Brown on brown, with white face-paint. Something to blend into desert sands, retaining the "Tusken Raiders" vibe the original Mutie Raiders were [quite deliberately I think] given.

Scraps of leather hide and grey fabric [and other muted colours], again tending to camouflage both in the desert of Angelis and in the Ash Wastes and Underhive of Necromunda.

Metallics mostly restricted to copper, bronze, and brass, with very little steel or silver.

Very limited use of spot colours on things such as feathers or spilled blood. Rare spot colour use as enamel or paint on metallic armour plates, to suggest scavenging from orks.

Deliberate use of the same range of skin tones on Kroot hunters, Kroot hounds, and Krootox [unlike most of the 'Eavy Metal paint schemes], both to make for the same camouflage, and to show them as very closely related species.

 

[Aulenback]

So with the Kroot hunting Raiders [Krootie Raiders?] solidly coming together, and the Pit Slaves gang almost done, and it being Orktober, a bit of attention is headed toward the green-skins of Angelis. The mob of biker Morkers, yes, and that "piratical" band of Gorkers, but also that most important and subversively important of all GorkaMorka factions, the Gretchin Revolushunary Kommittee, the GRC.

My GRC mob's vehicles are admittedly out-of-the-box straight up excuses to use the brilliant Big Lugga and Cutta models - except for the extended deck of the Big Lugga, adding a bit of carrying capacity. Thematically, they are Da Swing Riot, taking their cue from the ability of ANYBODY to be Captain Swing, or General Ludd.

“Sir, Your name is down amongst the Black hearts in the Black Book and this is to advise you and the like of you, who are Parson Justasses, to make your wills. Ye have been the Blackguard Enemies of the People on all occasions, Ye have not yet done as ye ought,.... Swing”

“Sir, This is to acquaint you that if your threshing machines are not destroyed by you directly we shall commence our labours. Signed on behalf of the whole ... Swing”

NAMES:

Kaptin Swing - head honcho
Ludd - banna wava
Fokks - cutta driver
Swift - cutta driver
Blind Pew - lugga driver
Valjean - wrecka
Wun - grot, blundabuss
Too - grot, blundabuss
Free - grot, blundabuss
For - grot, blundabuss
Fife - grot, blundabuss
Sicks - grot, blundabuss
Snivel - grot, blundabuss
Killer bird dinosaurs need SOMETHING to snack on, after all....