Sunday, February 24, 2019

Conversion Corner: Sister of Sigmar Augur

The promise of an age of peace and prosperity is drowned in blood.

With the Mordheim 2019 event rapidly approaching, I thought it apt to devise a Sister of Sigmar conversion suitable for our Conversion Corner segment. Fortunately, Games Workshop had just released the Genestealer Cultist Locus model, which seemed ideal to create a robed Sister of Sigmar. With a little thought, I decided to try to convert the model into one of the hero choices for the warband, the blind Augur. Fortunately, the model came together quite quickly!


The genestealer cult Locus model was an excellent foundation for creating an Augur for the Sisters of Sigmar warband.

As I suggested earlier, the basis for this conversion was the Genestealer Cultist Locus model. While I did not need to cut up the original model too much, I did need to remove a clawed tentacle/tail and remove the banner and mutated spine. I used green stuff to sculpt the robe on her back, covering the mutation I removed. I also trimmed off the shoulder pads and some of the mining suit visible on the torso. Again, green stuff was used to sculpt more of the tattered robe to cover these details. The edge of the model’s original robe had some embroidered detail, which I expanded and made look like the fiery tails of Sigmar’s comet.


The Augur’s falcon is blessing from the mighty Sigmar. Its feathers burn with righteous fury!

I wanted the Augur to look old and worn down after 20 years in the damned city of Mordheim. To do this, I resculpted much of the model’s face to have leathery wrinkled skin. I also carefully carved away some of the bulk on her hand, making it look more skeletal. I liked the idea that she would be carrying a large mace/staff that was a symbol of her office, and was able to use some of the model’s original weapon. I removed most of the haft of the weapon and replaced it with a piece of fine brass tubing, giving the weapon an austere, spartan appearance, fitting of the Sisterhood.


I resculpted the face of the Genestealer Cults Locus into that of an elderly women. She has weathered the past 20 years in the damnable Mordheim.

Having recently looked back through the Mordheim rulebook for inspiration, I noticed that in one of the illustrations, a group of Sisters of Sigmar were accompanied by a majestic bird carrying a hammer. I thought it would be neat if the Augur had a similar winged companion. Looking through my bits box, I discovered I had the bird from the AoS Nomad Prince, and used it as the basis for the conversion. I used various pieces from the Karl Franz kit to create the bird’s tail feathers (to look more like a comet) and the small hammer the bird is carrying. The haft of the bird’s hammer was created with a small piece of brass tubing.

I am quite happy with how quickly this model came together, both in terms of concept and execution. Games Workshop’s rapid release schedule, spanning a diverse series of games, really provides a vast opportunity for converters. Every month sees the release of new kits just waiting for people to cannibalize. Who knows, maybe another upcoming release will serve as the basis for another Sister?! Time will tell, but keep checking this space for more updates on the growing warband!

-Adam Wier  

10 comments:

  1. Brilliant. I love this conversion and the base mini is nice, so it's good to see it's relatively easy to convert for those of us who haven't been infested by genestealers. Looking forward to seeing what comes next!

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    1. Thanks for the kind words! It is nice to do a relatively simple conversion every once and a while. More to come soon!

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  2. Hi Adam,
    I really like your conversion of the Augur. It perfectly represents what it should. The added bird is a great addition and increases her appearance dramatically. Awesome concept - amazing executinon! Looking forward to see what you'll add to this warband next.

    Allow me one question about the green stuff flames on the edge of the model’s robe.
    Have you sculped these tiny flames directly on the model, or have you created them seperatly and glued them on later with superglue?

    Keep on the inspiring work, thanks for sharing and best regards!

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    1. I am glad you like the conversion! I am really happy with how the flame falcon turned out.

      For the flame trim on her robe, I sculpted everything directly on the model. I find in most cases it is easier for me to sculpt most things directly on the model itself. Trying to glue stuff on afterwards often resulted in me ruining the sculpted details. :/

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  3. Thanks for your answer and advice!

    I'm trying to get slowly into sculpting and working with green stuff. In my opiniom it is way easier this way too. But in a few cases the green stuff didn't stick to the surface (plastic) and got loose while painting. And I really take care to have a 'clean' surface.

    I think I just need a lot more practice and gain expirience on my own.

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    1. Yeah, there are always exceptions to everything. In some cases I will add a small amount of glue after the greenstuff as hardened to makes sure everything remains in place.

      The more practice the better!

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  4. Loving the green stuff work on the 'old girl'

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    1. I am glad you like her! I am working on at least one other older Sister of Sigmar for the warband.

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  5. That is brilliant. The green stuff work is fantastic. I think you are being too modest in an earlier reply stating its 'a relatively simple conversion'. I've seen some of your earlier work like the moulds for Imperial Guard etc. so clearly very talented. But this figure really stands out. Very, very inspirational. Love it.

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    1. Thank you! I am very pleased with how the model turned out. I was a little worried initially about how I would incorporate the falcon, but it fell together pretty easily. :)

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