Hey all,
Well, here is an update finally. I have not been able to get quite as much done as I wanted to before this post, but I was detecting a little impatience.
Here is the front gate again. This time it is primed. As I was hoping, the bones in the iron plates are not as visually jarring when they are not contrasting colors.
The following series is a carving progression for the small masks around the upper edge of the loading dock. When carving something this small it is easier to do them in batches and as part of a larger piece that can be cut out later. I needed thirteen. It is best to always do a few extra just in case there are any misshaps.
Lay out the basic shape.
Reference lines to guide subsequent cuts.
The eyes.
Defining the lower part of the mask.
Defining the upper helm.
The nose guard cut in.
Stop cuts made at the edges of the beard.
Beard area cut away relieving the mask from the background.
Brow line cut back.
Beard defined.
Mouth cut in.
Individual faces cut out.
Cut to finish size.
Sixteen faces. Three more than I need.
Five new large faces for the exterior of the complex.
I needed a total of 15 faces for the project. The one primed in black was the prototype. It was a challenge to come up with 15 different faces, but I did not want any repetition.
A large face and a small face in reference to a dime.
As stated in a previous post, I have been doing a lot of carving on the walls. This is the right side outer wall. I am working on the crenellations here.
A larger view showing the two arrow slits between the corbel recesses.
The next four photos show the loading dock that will abut the right exterior wall.
One of the ideas I had was to incorporate runes into the architecture since this is a common Dwarf characteristic. I would think that Chaos Dwarves would do the same. I asked Teb to design a style for the runes and I have used them at the entrance to the front gate and on the loading dock. This is the rune for “Dismay”. It will be used at the entrance to the front gate. The four pieces were cut from sheet styrene.
Because the plain flat surfaces would be visually boring I have added some texture.
Holding onto the individual pieces of the rune while adding some texture proved to be somewhat difficult so I decided to add the texture before I cut the elements of the rune out. This is the rune for “Fear” in progress.
The finished rune of fear. It will also be incorporated into the front steps leading up to the gate.
I also decided to incorporate runes in the top of the loading dock. From left to right they are: “Stone”, “Fire”, and “Iron”. The concept here is that as ore is hauled out of the mountain it passes over the loading dock into the furnaces and is turned into iron. (I hope that’s not too hokey.)
Here the three runes are cut out and textured.
Recesses were cut into the loading dock so that the runes can appear to be laid into the stone. The next two photos show the finished product.
Teb, you need to decide something here. These runes can be represented as iron plates set into the rock, or as obsidian. The fluff says that the plain that the Chaos Dwarves located to was littered with obsidian. If they are iron plates they can be painted up to be well rusted. If they are obsidian they can possibly be painted up a glossy black in a way that will convey the idea of a scratched up glass surface.
The remaining photos show the how the complex is progressing.
The way the piece is being designed there is going to be quite a bit of landmass to the right before the walls. This will be one of the major focal points of the piece. This is why I spent so much time on the loading dock. I have some imaginative plans for this area before the walls.
This photo shows the steps leading up to the main gate. The runes have not been inlaid yet. However, you can see the idea I am trying to communicate. Thousands of slaves have been forced up the steps and into the mining complex over its long history. As these unfortunate souls pass into forced labor and eventual death, they first must pass over the rune of “Fear”, and then pass over the rune of “Dismay” before entering the nightmare of the Chaos Dwarves. (Or something like that.)
Well, I hope you enjoyed this latest update. Rest assured I am working away diligently. Back to the mines!
Marcus
