Thursday, April 1, 2021

Steppenwolf redux or how to create an Eternal Champion

After a few requests to see all the versions of my Chaos Champion,  I thought it was time to revisit one of my favorite White Dwarf articles on Eternal Champions.  

 
 (How many Vasken's can there be?)
 
This will be an updated version of my previous article.  You can also see Colin’s blog here.
 
If you have WD #242 you will remember the article on the chaos Champion Steppenwolf.  If not please look it over below for all your Eternal Champion needs.
 
 *Disclaimer  Give'em Lead is not responsible if the Realm of Chaos bleeds into your reality after reading this article.

The gist of the original White Dwarf article was that French GW staffer Francois-Xavier Ngo had modeled an immortal champion who could fight across time and space.  He had a model or two for every game. 

 With that in mind I set to work making my own Steppenwolf...his name...Black Vasken the Tattered Prince.  Lets have a look at all the various versions Francois has for his Champion Steppenwolf first.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

 Now for Black Vasken a mix between General Kael and Slaine the Horned God...........

This is the original model that started it all.  I really loved how the cheetah barding and lance turned out.  The helmet crest was also cut off a Slaine model, I prefer the sculpted ones on the later models now.


Vasken on foot is a really striking pose.  The body is a grenadier chaos warrior with citadel head and sculpted crest.  His sword is from a 5th edition necromancer.  We also have a rearing conversion of Kringer.  His hindquarters are from a marauder pegasus and the front half of the marauder unicorn.



This is my favorite version of Vasken and Kringer.  Everything fell into perfect place on Vaskens conversions and Kringers Skeleton Warpaint looks really unique on the table top.



This is an upgrades version for Warcry after Vasken has completed a campaign or 2.  I really enjoy the heroic pose and bone claws.


Another version for warcry this one based off a grenadier barbarian and incorporates the death warpaint.


If Steppenwolf has a chariot Vasken should have a nice set of wheels as well, right?


And lastly if I ever need Vasken in Chaos Dwarf form I have that covered too.

 
 
 Now all I need is a 40K version but I really need to study  the models and decide which ones to use.  I'm thinking Terminator with Lightning Claws.
 
Let me know what you all think!

19 comments:

  1. These are all such a delight! The Aldi universe has a character, Blaine, that they make a different model for for almost every setting/game they do, with a similar "beyond time and space" connection. Not a shade on your series of custom dudes though :)

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    1. That still sounds legit tho! I really get a kick out of that kind of stuff.

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  2. A termie with Lightning Claws or duel-wielded Thunder Hammers!

    A really cool project mate. I am both impressed and inspired.

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    1. Glad to hear it Dai. Hahahaha and Triple Storm shields! I might have to actually try that. lol

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  3. Ok first: THANK YOU for posting these articles. When I got back into the hobby a few years ago I was trying to tell my buddy about the Eternal Champion. I couldn't find anything on them until I finally found your first recap.

    Second: This is awesome. Black Vasken looks fantastic in all his forms. It's really cool to see them all together, yet they all look vaguely similar. I like how in the old world he's a Chaos Champion, and then in Warcry he's become more of a barbarian. I love that you even have a chaos dwarf version! Great work!

    In the future I plan to have my own take on the eternal champion show up more often. Instead of a timeless warrior I'm going with more of the legacy hero type - Like the Dread Pirate Roberts or The Phantom. I have a masked Genestealer Cult commander, with a second version on the modeling block. It's a fun project.

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    1. Oh I'm glad I was able to help you locate that article! I really love the Dread Pirate Roberts angle as well. You could get a lot of laughs out of that one for sure.

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    2. The Steppenwolf article was always one of my favorites. Glad to see I'm not the only one! I really need to model the second version of the Snatcher Devil soon. His parts have been in the build tray for well over a year. I need to finish and paint up the heavy stubber guy for the kill team anyway. Maybe this weekend I'll find some time.

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  4. As always I appreciate how you create stories around your miniatures. Very inspiring.

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    1. Thanks man! I really need to find some time to get back to the comic reports.

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  5. How many chaos Knights have been destroyed in the process of making Vasken´s head? Awesome work!

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    1. To many! If i was smart i would have got the head cast up separately lmao

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  6. Everything about these is just fantastic! Nicely done!

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  7. This is the article everyone needs.
    A great how to and extended explanation of everything behind your hobby. So personal, and detailed about your thinking and how it evolved about the eternal champion and how Vasken came to be.

    This was a great post, truly.

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    1. Thanks Major! Vasken is the fuel that drives my hobby world!

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  8. There are many cool sci fi bike models, but that Steppenwolf is the coolest of them all. What a fantastic collection. Seriously. Hats off!

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    1. Now you got me thinking Black Vasken on a bike...on a steel horse he rides.

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