40k Concept Art: Khorne Berzerkers

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

Hey everyone, thought I'd start up this thread so I can catalogue any 40k relevant concept art I happen to be doing that wouldn't really fit in one of my Heresy-era topics.

Anyhow, to start off, this started as a purely AoS designed unit, until I realised that there is an existing precedent for Khorngors in 40k as a facet of Beastmen - Bloodgors

Obviously this has been spurred by Tzaangors popping up with the new Tzeentch wave, and I thought it'd be fun to revisit some other older units which haven't seen the light of day for a while. Aesthetically, I really wanted to pay homage to these classic Bloodletters, which were some of the first miniatures I owned. Obviously they deviated from the trend for design when it comes to Bloodletters, but I'm a big fan of the huge manes of matted hair and spiny growths, so having looked at the style of the Tzaangors, I thought it'd be a great direction in which to take an interpretation of Khorgors / Bloodgors.

http://www.coolminiornot.com/pics/pics7/img42751d49b00a3.jpg

Now, I am aware that the last Khorngor models available don't really look all that similar to my concept:

http://www7b.biglobe.ne.jp/~ad44/warhammer1st/img/khorngor.gif

However, I wanted to get a hold on the basic aesthetic of what they'd look like as a sub-species of beastmen before I (potentially) branched out into one or two other Khorngor / Bloodgor unit types, in the same way there are a number of different Tzangor units for AoS.

In the illustration, the beastman is pictured with a two-handed axe, which is primarily for the AoS version - in 40k, I'd probably go with them having heavy chainswords instead.

Anyway, here's the original concept sketch, and a couple of palette tests I threw together last minute, as I'll put together some more well-thought up palettes when I've got a bit more time.

Anyway, hope you like them, and thanks for looking

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

I thought I'd put together a version of the Khorngor / Bloodgor which is a bit more 40k friendly, to see how the Heavy Chainsword fits with the less than sci-fi gear:

I've also been musing about the elite variant(s), and I think I'm gonna go with an armoured unit, with the heavy chainmail featured on the old Khorngor models. In terms of 40k, they'll basically be veterans, having tempered their bloodthirst with a cunning that makes them considerably more dangerous. Wargear wise, they'll have chainaxes, shotguns & 'nades.

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

People are probably sick and tired of this, but I'm having fun, so I thought I'd add some variations to the colour schemes and give them each a bit of background:

The Bloodpath

Repeatedly identified during the Sabbat Worlds Crusade accompanying the forces of the traitorous Blood Pact, the warband known as ‘The Bloodpath’ consisted of hordes of Beastmen Abhumans, believed to primarily belong to the abberant ‘Bloodgor’ strain. Serving as scouts and vanguard forces, Bloodpath Bloodgor were notably more well-disciplined than others of their ilk, though just as brutal in manner, often taking grisly trophies and adorning themselves in the wargear of their brutalized foe.

Band of the Weeping Wound

Named for the twisted scars which pattern their hides from head to hoof, the Bloodgor warriors of the Band of the Weeping Wound are apparently never seen without a freshly bleeding incision, the incessant ritual scarification performed upon their own bodies a sign of devotion to their dark patron. This warband is known to follow in the wake of the Butcherhorde of Khârn the Betrayer, having adopted a number of their ritualistic practices in veneration of these Khornate Chaos Space Marines.

Slaughterspawn

Warbands bearing the title ‘Slaughterspawn’ have been reported across multiple warzones involving the Black Legion of Abaddon the Despoiler, deployed in massed waves of frothing, rage-fueled Bloodgor. Whether these warbands adopt the cognomen to signify their allegiance, or are merely fragments of a vast horde of Khornate Beastmen, Slaughterspawn warriors have appeared upon myriad fronts of the 13^th Black Crusade, their hides darkened with ash in fealty to their black-armoured overlords.

The Flesh-Takers

Believed to have stemmed from the human crew of the Berserkers of Kharadon fleet, a once loyalist Chapter which devolved into the Khornate Traitor Skulltakers, over generations of exposure to the warp and increasingly debased cannibalistic rituals, The Flesh-Takers have emerged as a warband of twisted Bloodgor abhumans, serving both as prey for their masters’ bloodthirst away from the battlefield and vicious warrior-auxiliaries upon it.

[Halandaar]

Looks great! I like to think that Tzaangors have laid the groundwork for the return of Pestigors, Slaangors and Khornegors in the future as cross-system unit types.

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

Looks great! I like to think that Tzaangors have laid the groundwork for the return of Pestigors, Slaangors and Khornegors in the future as cross-system unit types.

Thanks man - yeah I hope so too, and I've got plans for some illustrations for both Pestigors & Slaangors (plus variants)

Anyway, no rest for the wicked:

[Joe]

Nothing pleases me more than seeing a bolt pistol without the ridiculous ammo-chains. ^^

 

Loving these so far!

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

Thanks dude - the bolt pistol is probably the part of the illustration I'm most proud of, weirdly enough

[~Drakzilla~]

Digging this a lot. My only criticism is perhaps you could work on your poses, mainly on the legs. It might help to look at pose references to get a more natural stance. It seems like a minor thing, but I think it will take your concepts to the next level.

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

Digging this a lot. My only criticism is perhaps you could work on your poses, mainly on the legs. It might help to look at pose references to get a more natural stance. It seems like a minor thing, but I think it will take your concepts to the next level.

 

Yeah, I get you - I always have trouble with translating poses from the human scaffold I draw underneath to the power armoured exterior, especially in the feet & shoulders - I think I need to work on altering the anatomy of the scaffold underneath to have broader shoulders & hips so that it fits the proportions of the armour better

 

Plus, maybe choosing beastmen first off was a bad idea considering their leg structure - the pose works far better in the original image with the axe, as it's got a decent amount of movement, but the quick fix job I did with the chainsword makes it too static to work with the legs

[~Drakzilla~]

Yeah, working off of a normal human body for Astartes sometimes has its problems, since space marine anatomy inside their armor tends to be a bit wonky.

 

In my experience, when doing the initial pose sketch for a space marine in armor, it helps to do the legs as if they are armored rather than naked. The bulky, bell-bottom look of power armored legs can often throw off a pose that seems fine at first.

[Pyroclast91]

Awesome work as always IHF I love the khorngors actually far far far more than tzaangors. I think the fluff you've written does a great job of outlining them as well I definitely can't wait to see more. Do you have any plans for doing Data sheet style entries for them like you've done for previous concepts? Also that Berzerker looks fantastic are you planning to do some variations from the standard zerkers? Keep up the awesome work man.

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

Awesome work as always IHF I love the khorngors actually far far far more than tzaangors. I think the fluff you've written does a great job of outlining them as well I definitely can't wait to see more. Do you have any plans for doing Data sheet style entries for them like you've done for previous concepts? Also that Berzerker looks fantastic are you planning to do some variations from the standard zerkers? Keep up the awesome work man.

Thanks Pyroclast, yeah I enjoy doing the little blurbs to help tie them into the Universe without having to go too in-depth. I'll probably avoid doing full entries purely because of how much of a time drag coming up with rules & formatting them can be - that part tends to be the biggest roadblock momentum-wise, and the more time I can dedicate entirely to the artwork, the more it'll improve.

In regards to the 'zerker, hopefully this'll answer your question:

[Pyroclast91]

That definitely makes sense I've always had a lot harder time on rules and fluff than I ever have I the modeling and visually creative aspects of the hobby. I guess I should have paid attention in English class after all ;). The scheme on that second berzerker is awesome I love how much a simple color change can affect the aesthetic. In regards to the scale on them as you mentioned earlier looking at the second PA drawing it occurs to me that you might be able to get a "space marine-esque" scale simply by enlarging the torso a bit and rotating the Paulson pauldrons outwards so the inner edges are closer vertical. Not that your scale really needs changed I'd just been thinking about it after reading your earlier part. Also on another note what drawing program do you use? it seems to produce fantastic results of course I realise this has more to do with the operator ;)

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

That definitely makes sense I've always had a lot harder time on rules and fluff than I ever have I the modeling and visually creative aspects of the hobby. I guess I should have paid attention in English class after all . The scheme on that second berzerker is awesome I love how much a simple color change can affect the aesthetic. In regards to the scale on them as you mentioned earlier looking at the second PA drawing it occurs to me that you might be able to get a "space marine-esque" scale simply by enlarging the torso a bit and rotating the Paulson pauldrons outwards so the inner edges are closer vertical. Not that your scale really needs changed I'd just been thinking about it after reading your earlier part. Also on another note what drawing program do you use? it seems to produce fantastic results of course I realise this has more to do with the operator

Yeah, I can be a bit hit-and miss when it comes to drawing Astartes, it should improve over time, but with the focus on these tending towards speed over accuracy, I'm happy with a few inconsistencies as I'm trying for more of a concept art vibe than actual high-quality illustrations.

I'm currently using GIMP in combination with a Wacom Intuos Pro graphics tablet

[Joe]

I don't suppose you've given any thought to commissions?

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

I don't suppose you've given any thought to commissions?

I have, but I've also given thought to my finals in the summer, and I couldn't really face the time concerns - right now, I can adjust this stuff around Uni work, but if there were paying clients involved, I'd find that much harder to do.

I'm flattered that you'd consider my work worthy of commissioning though

Anyhow, bunny ears:

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

Okay, so here are the final 4 (I'll add a little background blurb underneath as with the Bloodgor later):

Red Corsairs

Butcherhorde

Black Legion

World Eaters

[GeofreyShank]

These would fit much better with the new Khârn.

I want a set.

[Iron Hands Fanatic]

These would fit much better with the new Khârn.

I want a set.

Thanks, that was pretty much the approach I was trying to take - combining the Mk V aesthetic traditionally associated with the World Eaters with the stylings of the newer Chaos Marine models and some of the design ques from the current Berzerkers.

Again, this was inspired by the Tzeentch wave of releases, with the Rubrics being in Mk IV rather than VII - for the Berzerkers I didn't want to go totally Mk V, as they have been mentioned with mismatched armour salvaged from dead enemies, and don't tend to take great care of it, but I definately wanted there to be strong ties to the classic World Eater aesthetic:

http://3.bp.blogspot.com/_VPuhohGQYfo/TEe1YUnH4dI/AAAAAAAAADI/w7lpCbqqsSk/s1600/Classic+Chaos+Space+Marines+-+World+Eaters+and+Death+Guard.jpg

I even remember not being a huge fan of the current Khorne Berzerkers when I bought a set of the models around 12 years ago, so I thought doing some concept work around what an overhauled set might look like could be fun.

Glad you like them