9th Age T9A: Saurian Ancients of Aotarakoa

[Karak Norn Clansman]

Aotarakoa Saurian​

The Ninth Age (T9A) concept art for fantasy Indonesian Saurian armed with copper klewang, based upon Nias warrior garb. The Nias tribe were famous headhunters and warriors who carved wooden figures and small stone monuments for their houses. Saurian inspired by the sterling sculpting work of Rikard.

The Saurian Ancients are Reptile peoples of the equatorial tropics who once ruled the entire world during the long First Age, yet their dominion was rent asunder by a giant comet followed by massive slave rebellions. The ascendant thralls of many different species went their own ways and founded civilizations and nomad hordes whose turbulent development have dominated all subsequent eight Ages. The Saurian Ancients are still great regional powers to be feared, however, for theirs is the pulsating might and olden glory of rich resources, and their claws and fangs are sharp even against foes bedecked in steel. As Vetian countries start to explore and colonize distant parts of the world during the Ninth Age, they come into frontal collision with the Saurian Ancients of Virentia, Taphria and southeastern Augea.

And this struggle between man and lizard is by no means a foregone conclusion...

Reference images:

 

[Warden]

Dang there are even pics of shrunken heads there!

Really great fluff; I hope the mighty @Scalenex adds this entry to the mighty Lustriapedia as there are not nearly enough entries for T9A on it right now.

 

[Karak Norn Clansman]

Thanks!

Off-topic: Gosh, Lustria is such a vibrant and active forum. We used to do all this constant updating of resources across the board on CDO: Wikis, webzines, you name it.

But the ship has been drifting on a skeleton crew for years now, with old staff generally too busy and the new staff (except me) having done a great work for the site and then retired. I was always only an auxilliary moderator to help out with contests and stuff like that, a temporary solution that stuck. Doing some resource compilations, too, and ran the site pretty much alone on copy-paste-autopilot much of last year.

But now we find ourselves retiring old staff members who have not checked in for years, and looking for fresh blood (hoping to mimic you). CDO remains an active creative hobby hub, but all new monuments of shining content compilations we raise, are raised among the many untended remains from years of greater glory.

Members of Lustria Online, your dedicated team of active staff is your greatest treasure.

Cheers

 

[Warden]

Thanks!

Off-topic: Gosh, Lustria is such a vibrant and active forum. We used to do all this constant updating of resources across the board on CDO: Wikis, webzines, you name it.

But the ship has been drifting on a skeleton crew for years now, with old staff generally too busy and the new staff (except me) having done a great work for the site and then retired. I was always only an auxilliary moderator to help out with contests and stuff like that, a temporary solution that stuck. Doing some resource compilations, too, and ran the site pretty much alone on copy-paste-autopilot much of last year.

But now we find ourselves retiring old staff members who have not checked in for years, and looking for fresh blood (hoping to mimic you). CDO remains an active creative hobby hub, but all new monuments of shining content compilations we raise, are raised among the many untended remains from years of greater glory.

Members of Lustria Online, your dedicated team of active staff is your greatest treasure.

Cheers

True it was off topic, but High Praise!

If there was a plaque to give as a present to staff members when they depart, something like this would probably be written on it.

Thanks for the compliment, I will pass this off to the moderators!

@Crowsfoot , @Aginor , @Scalenex , @Killer Angel , @Itepixcauh , @LizardWizard , @Pinktaco , @Qupakoco , and of course @The Red Devil


I do hope that CDO gets truly reinvigorated someday, but I fear it would be only if GW were to bring back the chaos dwarfs in some new form. But then they will most likely have a new name, and be very different from anything we have seen before.

 

[Crowsfoot]

Thanks!

Off-topic: Gosh, Lustria is such a vibrant and active forum. We used to do all this constant updating of resources across the board on CDO: Wikis, webzines, you name it.

But the ship has been drifting on a skeleton crew for years now, with old staff generally too busy and the new staff (except me) having done a great work for the site and then retired. I was always only an auxilliary moderator to help out with contests and stuff like that, a temporary solution that stuck. Doing some resource compilations, too, and ran the site pretty much alone on copy-paste-autopilot much of last year.

But now we find ourselves retiring old staff members who have not checked in for years, and looking for fresh blood (hoping to mimic you). CDO remains an active creative hobby hub, but all new monuments of shining content compilations we raise, are raised among the many untended remains from years of greater glory.

Members of Lustria Online, your dedicated team of active staff is your greatest treasure.

Cheers

It's sad that the CDO site is seeing less traffic these days, I hope that improves and you get new staff that are as equally dedicated as yourself.

I think Lustria is so strong because we have a great leader, great staff, but more importantly great members, YOU are the heros we just try to keep you happy.

 

[Killer Angel]

Thanks!

Off-topic: Gosh, Lustria is such a vibrant and active forum. We used to do all this constant updating of resources across the board on CDO: Wikis, webzines, you name it.

But the ship has been drifting on a skeleton crew for years now,

I know the feeling.
I am a Mod also on Khemri forum, and it is painful to see how it has really become a desertic land.
There is still interest and love for TK, but the traffic has moved toward generic forums related to games that still support the army (T9Age), rather then the old friendly forum dedicated to the army itself. A pity, the fluff is at least a good half of the hobby


So, i am really glad we are such a strong and still constantly growing community.
We on Lustria online can really call ourselves lucky, and will certainly continue do to the work we're already doing, trying to improve the place. Tnx for the kind words, @Karak Norn Clansman

 

[Lawot]

But back on topic...

...I love the drawing! Any ideas for conversions to make our Saurians look something like that?

 

[Karak Norn Clansman]

I love the drawing! Any ideas for conversions to make our Saurians look something like that?

Thanks! Great question. Let's brainstorm, folks!

Spoiler

Are there any kits out there that could help pull Saurians in this direction? Bits and bobs. And scratchbuild tips and tricks.

The solid metal throat necklaces could perhaps be approximated by bending paper clips around a pencil or similar cylindrical object, cut it off and glue it on as a circle around your Saurian's throat.

The loincloth could be sculpted similar to how you make cloaks. There might also be small cloth flaps around from various kits that can be used.

The tasseled cloth flaps on the loincloth (if one wants to up it to that detaillevel) could be sculpted on top of the dried loincloth with ease. Just two rectangular flat surfaces, with fringes just like how the pteruges' fringes in this tutorial are made.

The scale vest, if one goes so far, looks like it needs to be almost all sculpted. I think the easiest way to make it would first be to make a smooth enough basis, wait for it to dry, and then add details in one or two layers. This snake scale tutorial minus the stomach might give an idea for how to make the scales, but it basically boils down to either one of two methods (the second is the simpler one):

If one want to add the ribbings to the vests, then it should be easiest to do that after the scales have dried, in a third layer of green stuff.

I might have to make some sculpting tutorials for Aotarakoa Saurian conversions. Busy for months ahead, but I'll make a note of it for later.

The ornate headdress things could be broken down into some kind of flower/plant like central form (etched brass modelling plants?), fine feathers (base it roughly on this one, but with less details?) and the long stalks ending in hanging tassels. The tassel stalks could probably be made by just pinning bent paper clips into a Saurus head, and sculpting thin tassels on the hanging bits, leaving the stalk itself be an untouched paper clip to be ornamented during painting. Or are there tassels around in plastic kits that could just be glued to his head?

I think simplifying the designs from the concept art would be crucial to converting a large number of Saurians. Kitbashing is quicker than sculpting. Perhaps the most demanding ornate conversions would be reserved for elite units and characters and command groups (making the front rank stand out), with ordinary Skinks and Saurians receiving just a few conversions?

The rattan sphere at the waist sash could maybe be sculpted around a softairgun pellet. Keep the details simple, it would be more about giving a decent-enough impression of rattan wickerwork and a hole, than about getting it perfect.

Perhaps press-casting parts with blue stuff could be one way to mass-produce crucial details that would be labour-intensive to repeat over many miniatures?

@Itepixcauh and @Rikard, do you have any ideas to share? Perhaps even brand new tutorials to cook up here?

Now, keep the conversion ideas flowing! Whether sculpting or kitbashing, throw in all your ideas into the ring, folks, and please share any and all conversions you attempt to make.

PS. @Warden Just thinking in CDO ways here: Would a conversion/painting contest themed around "Indonesian/Southeast Asian Lizardmen/Saurians" be of interest? You've got plenty of creative people around here, and I bet several of them could come up with clever ways to tackle this concept in miniature, including by entirely original designs. Plus it would be a chance to explore reptile people in the Hinterlands of Kuresh in WHFB at the same time.

Cheers! DS