Alright, so I've long since declared what a cheapskate I am when it comes to minis. I like plastic minis over counters, but don't like paying for them (I'm in the toy business, I KNOW what these things cost to make, rarity be damned). I don't like painting if I don't have to, but I DO like tinkering and the satisfaction of getting something cool out of something that wasn't. And did I mention as-cheap-as-I-can-manage?
My group is soon to make a return to Dragon Mountain after a 14-year campaign hiatus, with my players reprising their original characters. So, I want to do it right, and I've been secretly stocking up on kobold minis when I find them cheap, because I'm going to need a LOT for those little buggers. Problem is, I needed some specific stuff with different armament, and I couldn't believe that some of those kobold spearmen/skirmishers go for 4-5 bucks a pop on eBay, so I got to work. Here are my conversions:
Kobold Monks to Kobold Swordsmen!
The first set conversion started off as cheap Kobold Monks. I didn't dig the unarmed "karate chop" pose of the originals at all, but saw potential. So, with some super-glue, I folded that outstretched hand back to their torso, where it rests quite nicely under their other hand. Easy to do. With a tiny drill, I then drilled a hole into their chest at an angle to plug in a weapon. I ordered a half-dozen LoM Human Marauders really cheap (about .50 cents each), since you get two weapons for the price of one! I chopped off their hands, shaved down the hilts, and plugged them in to get my new TWO-HANDED LONGSWORD KOBOLD RAIDERS!
Kobold Slingers to Kobold Polearmers
When I saw the sneak peeks of the new LoM minis and saw the Kobold Slingers, I really licked my chops. When I scored a few dozen for about 2-for-a-buck, I wet myself, because I knew they would make great mods! I have other plans similar to above, but for now, I need some landschneckt polearmers for Clan Wishbone. So, I snipped off the slings to leave their hands free (you can snip just half off and make a convincing shillelagh, or a mace with a little silver paint!). Then, I sanded down some toothpicks and painted them brown for the shafts. I needed polearm heads, and I had the snapped off remnants of a Blood War Mezzoloth weapon floating around, so I cut it apart to make 4 SEPARATE HEADS! That's economy! I got two crescent blades, a mace head and a spear point out of that sucker! I glued them to the toothpicks, used my trusty silver pen to add metal highlights, then glued them primarily to the bag/belt section of the body, where the shaft rested perfectly, then to the individual hands. Regular toothpicks without heads work for pikes, too! Viola: CLAN WISHBONE POLEARMERS!
Here's a close-up shot of a single Kobold Glaive Fighter.
Good stuff! Total cost to get 8 two-hand swordsmen and 8 polearmers? About 10 bucks! And, yeah, apparently my stovetop is the best lighting in my house for closeup pictures! =-)
Brandon
Looks like a some folks don't dig on my hotlinks, so here are the short versions:
Kobold Monks +LoM Human Marauders+Superglue +Drill = TWO-HANDED LONGSWORD KOBOLD RAIDERS!
Kobold Slingers+Toothpicks +Paint + BW Mezzoloth Polearm Head= CLAN WISHBONE POLEARMERS!
The second figure up from the bottom in the "Clan Wishbon Polearmers looks like it has a blunt polearm? Lucern Hammer?
The second figure up from the bottom in the "Clan Wishbon Polearmers looks like it has a blunt polearm? Lucern Hammer?
Sure! It was a leftover piece from the mezzoloth's polearm, and it looked like a stout mace head, so I figured what the heck and made it a polearm. I wasn't too worried about emulating anything specific.