I love genestealer cults. From the iconic 1st edition cultists released in the 1980s [Ed: Gotta love that fat patriarch sitting on his own golden throne!] to the modern redesign a few years back for 7th ed and now 8th ed. There is just something about them. And i love the silliness of the cult’s unofficial limousine in one of the old white dwarfs [Ed: very Snake Plissken]. And i love the lore – the five generations and how they infest communities and then cities and then worlds [Ed: and then miniature collections] with their doomsday. And i love how they spend years planning and coordinating and infesting before they suddenly reveal themselves in an uprising [Ed: Yes, they are the ultimate faffers].

Genestealer_Cult
oldhammer genestealer cultists showcased in an old white dwarf

Inq54 released two conversion packs for making genestealer cultists: the genestealer magus pack and the genestealer hybrid pack. And of course the purestrain genestealer model itself, as well as an alternative genestealer head [Ed: was this ever released? I’ve never seen it available]. And then apparently there is an unreleased purestrain genestealer. Combining these conversion packs with existing inquisitor models provides a large range of viable cultist models.

Inquisitor_54mm_Genestealer_Magus
The genestealer magus pack
Inquisitor_54mm_Hybrid
The genestealer hybrid pack

I got the genestealer cult bug many years ago, so I had a small band of genestealer cultists when i first collected inq figures. But i sold them off on ebay.

IMGP1346
A genestealer magus i made over 10 years ago and no longer in my collection. I love the bronze collar, but my attempt at making padded ribbed clothing with greenstuff is pretty crap.

In early 2018 i began building up another coven of genestealer cultists. I kitbashed a mix of genestealer hybrid bits with Karman torsos from the discontinued AT-43 range. For the legs i used cheap china made plastic astronauts, the sort where you buy 10 plastic toys in a clear bag.

And only about a year and a half later, i’ve finally painted them up. Why so long? Well it’s been over ten years since i have put paint to mini. In the last couple of years, I have sometimes used a commission painter but even an old faffer like me couldn’t ignore the large and expanding pile of unpainted minis that i have. So about six months ago I bought off ebay about 20 GW paints and old brushes from a gamer getting out of the hobby. But still i faffed about, looking at youtube painting tutorials, and then more recently umm-ing and argh-ing about whether contrast paints would make life easier.

Then suddenly the faff dam broke. A month ago i got motivated and spray coated a bunch of minis with a black rattle can from the local hardware shop, and within only a few weeks i had started painting.

And i enjoyed it. And it was much more fun than i thought it would be. I think using a wet palette [Ed: for the first time, and oh, what a joy it is] and using a larger brush than I would normally use have made it much easier to paint.

So here is the completed coven [Ed: though still faffing about whether to add black pupils to the eyes].

Hybrid Cultists with Webber and Mining Laser
More Hybrid Cultists

I also created a few 4th generation cultists using inq54 bits.

On the left a hybrid cultist (using the tau firewarrior head as a base and an Andrea 54mm torso). In the middle a Kellermorph (using the bosun boatswain head this time). On the right a Genestealer Nexus (Here i have run out of hybrid heads so i used toothpicke murke’s head instead).
An aberrant (left) made from a plastic mutant chronicles miniature by fantasy flight games. On the right a hybrid cultist using up some slick devlan bits

Of course these hybrid grunts need some sort of chain of command for leadership

On the left a WIP Acolyte iconward. I still need to find an appropriate cult banner to finish him off. On the right a Genestealer Primus (inspired from a genestealer magus i saw in a white dwarf once)

So there you have it. All i need to kitbash now is a genestealer magus and find a suitable model for the patriarch. And if i can source some more hybrid heads and arms i plan to make another coven (this time with a green tinge to the skin).

Addendum: what’s a cult without some purestrain genestealers

purestrain genestealers