Community painter Tom Danvers has heavily converted a series of classic Blood Angels characters, dragging them across the Rubicon Primaris so beautifully that we simply had to feature them.
Tom: I got back into Warhammer almost five years ago, after a 20 year hiatus, when my wife bought me a copy of the board game Space Hulk. I instantly fell in love with the superb Blood Angels Terminators in the set.
I read the backstory of the Blood Angels that came in the box and have never looked back. I love the contrast of the former IX Legion’s artistry and nobility with their feral rage in battle. My own army is centred around Captain Anton Maglio of the Fifth Company.*
I have made a couple of variants of Captain Maglio, even one where he has fallen to the Black Rage and is decked out in Terminator armour for one last final glorious charge!
I love kitbashing and converting miniatures (probably more than I like painting them!) so most of my characters have been modified in some way. My favourite model is Brother Vitus, a Sanguinary Priest in Terminator armour.
Vitus is based on a model from the Space Hulk set but has been combined with various other kits and has a cloak made from modelling putty. He’s kneeling across a stricken battle-brother, fighting off unseen xenos terrors, and waiting for a moment he can administer aid. There are no official rules for a Sanguinary Priest in Terminator armour but my gaming group let me play him as a normal Sanguinary Priest. I sometimes give him the Artificer Armour relic to replicate the endurance of Terminator armour.
My Librarian Dreadnought, Ancient Arantor, is based on the Contemptor-Achillus Dreadnought from Forge World. I replaced his head with that of a desiccated Space Marine and added some Blood Angels flair in the form of blood drops sculpted from modelling putty.
I also assumed that some of the Chapter Command of the Blood Angels might eventually cross the Rubicon Primaris, so I kitbashed my own Lord Commander Dante and Astorath the Grim. I wanted to keep my Dante as close to the pose of the fantastic original as possible. The base model is a Primaris Phobos Lieutenant and other bits have been taken from the Sanguinary Guard kit. The lack of fancy wings and relatively simple armour felt in keeping with Dante's stoic character and backstory.
Astorath is based on the Judiciar kit with other parts from the original Astorath model, including the iconic wings and death mask. The axe head was cut from plasticard and sanded into shape. He has recently had to deliver the Emperor's Peace to some of his raging battle brothers, reflecting the tragic role that Astorath plays.
My Blood Angels army is always slowly growing, I have a bike-riding version of Captain Maglio on the painting table as well as some more Terminators (I can't get enough of those) and some Primaris Eradicators for some much-needed fire support. The enemies of the Imperium are numberless and the sons of the Great Angel will never rest whilst any still draw breath. For Sanguinius!
Thanks Tom, these really are incredible miniatures. We always love to see what dedicated Warhammer fans have been working on, so please share your own kitbashes and conversions with us on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
* In the official lore the Fifth are known as the 'Daemonbanes' and led by Captain Sendini, but in my head, he has been lost in battle and Maglio has taken his place.