modular barbarians

Mithril2098

8/6/25, 2:26 AM

Define barbarian? because that's a term that applies to a pretty wide catagory. the original meaning was "anyone who doesn't speak greek", later it became "anyone who isn't us", and has been applied at various times to the celts, the germanics, the picts, the goths, the huns, the Turks, the Mongols, the aztecs, the inca, the berbers, the Vikings, the irish, etc...

and pretty much all of them were depicted at one time or another while being referred to by that term as scantily clad, heavily armored, low of intelligence and high of agression.

Brian Van De Walker

8/6/25, 7:09 AM

@Mithril2098 Connan types in speedo loin cloths.

timbus the thirteenth

8/6/25, 3:39 PM

@Mithril2098 im specifically talking about fantasy barbarians, who have a couple different archetypes. The main issue I'm talking about is that all 'generic fantasy barbarian' models lean towards a look with a lot of clothing, when a lot of barbarians in media are shirtless. Think of oldschool chao marauders for WHFB, or the newer Darkoath for AOS. IMO, if a barbarian doesnt hve their nips out, I might as well just buy historical models.

Brian Van De Walker

8/7/25, 2:40 AM

@timbus the thirteenth true and the historical kits tend to be better deals.

timbus the thirteenth

8/7/25, 11:58 PM

@Brian Van De Walker unhinged tangent time: in one of my darkest moments, I considered getting the victrix unarmored celts to fulfill my shirtlessness fix. They're roughly 40$ for a pack of 60, with 1 in about 6 not wearing a tunic. So I'd get about 10 for much cheaper than the 60$ for 10 darkoath models (seriously what is gw smoking?). Of course, given that leaves me with about 50 models with sh*rts, that I have absolutely no use for, and that are also a rapidly aging sculpt. Hence me deciding to instead beg the mysterious and dark gods here at WGA. I figured "shirtless barbarian" is a large enough niche that's so bizarrely absent it might have a shot of vox populi'd? Idk. Seriously, whoever runs this place, if you need a blood sacrifice lmk, I'm that desperate.

TL;DR: historical kits are so goated I almost lost the rest of my hobby space to models I don't even want

Brian Van De Walker

8/11/25, 10:05 PM

@timbus the thirteenth you could also get the naked Celt fantics and just greenstuff the clothing though it would be good to have some Connan types in plastic.

SN

Sir Nobody

8/13/25, 3:01 PM

@timbus the thirteenth Just to be annoying the shirtless speedo wearing barbarians are more Marvel comics Conan than Robert E. Howard Conan. Though Howard did occasionaly write Conan wearing little more than a loincloth this was a) when it made sense b) done largely in the hopes that Wierd Tales pet painter, Margaret Brundage, liked painting attractive men and women in danger and Howard knew if she decided to paint a scene from his story for the cover it meant a bonus.

As such in the north Conan (and everyone else) wouldwear furs and leathers, in battle they'd wear armour, king Conan for example would go into battle wearing full plate and a sallet as his helmet (horned helmets did appear a lot though)

All that said as someone who grew up with Savage Sword of Conan I see the appeal, there are already a few good suggestions I'll add the Citizens of Rome set includes a loincloth wearing body that might do with a headswap, though unfortunantly most of the figures are clothed.

Mithril2098

8/13/25, 6:17 PM

@Sir Nobody yeah, in the Conan stories the main times he's depicted running around without clothing was usually "after he got captured and stuck in the BBEG's prison", and that's just presented as part of the BBEG ensuring that conan didn't have any sort of weapons. though in those stories he often went without clothing for prolonged parts of the narrative, that is, the parts all about how he escaped the prison and recovered or captured new clothing and weapons. though there are a few were he strips down to very very light clothing in order to sneak around somewhere.

much of the 'shirtless barbarian' trope derived from Howard's imitators basing their heroes more off the book covers than the actual stories. (though Burroughs's tarzan and barsoom stories also contributed heavily) and then it got cemented with the movie "Conan the barbarian" and it's sequel. which was leveraging Schwarzenegger's bodybuilder career, and thus amde excuses to show off his muscles whenever possible. that first film though he spends more of it in clothes and armor than shirtless though. it was the schlocky sequel "Conan the destroyer" that really leaned into the frazetta outfit look, wearing a fur speedo and horned hat, and pretty much nothing else. most reboots end up with Conan running around shirtless for similar reasons, having hired people with bodybuilder physiques to play the character. (like Momoa.)

the trope has been falling out of favor, in part because of its sexist overtones, and in part because people are now much more informed about what the so called barbarian cultures really were like. plus it tends to look more interesting when the heroes arnd villains are decked out in furs, leather, or chainmail. 'barbarians' tend to be much more viking or steppe tribe coded these days, often with heavy elements of 'biker gang'

for customization purposes, the Frostgrave ghost archipeligo 'tribals' have a fair bit of the look you want, you'd just need to do head and weapon swaps.

timbus the thirteenth

8/14/25, 2:29 PM

@Mithril2098 Okay first of all: all of this Conan backstory is genuinely really interesting, thanks for typing all this out! I've read a grand total of like five Conan comics, so my knowledge is pretty limited.

I would be completely fine with viking/steppe tribe/biker gang style barbarians, and I actually really like models with proper pants and more accessories. The main problem is, just about EVERY SINGLE ONE of the plastic kits currently on the market are wearing SHIRTS. At the very least show off some abs! I attached a picture of a bloodreaver from GW, a model that's a good example of what I'm talking about. There's basically nothing like that from any other plastic manufacturer, and it's driving me crazy. Believe me, I have checked extensively.

With that said, the kit you recommended is a pretty decent place to start. I'm not a fan of... a lot of that kit, but that's never stopped me before. Thanks man!

A properly shirtless barbarian!

timbus the thirteenth

8/14/25, 2:39 PM

@Sir Nobody

>I see the appeal

magic and witchcraft

ohhh you want shirtless barbarian models tooo ohhh

(okay but fr the thought of conan in a sallet is really funny for some reason. Thanks for the conan lore!)

SN

Sir Nobody

8/21/25, 12:25 PM

@timbus the thirteenth Obviously I share Brundage's love for scantily clad attractive people in danger.

As for "king Conan" going into battle wearing a sallet "mercenary Conan" would be described wearing a burgonet or a horned helmet so I sometimes wonder whether Howard actually knew what helmets he was describing using these names or whether he didn't care much (which funnily enough a big part of him writing fantasy is, according to his own words, he didn't want to deal with the research a historic story would need)

Yronimos Whateley

8/27/25, 1:37 PM

A bit late to this, but I'm going to say that it's Edgar Rice Burroughs and Frank Frazetta that you get to blame for the fantasy barbarian in loincloth archetype - Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian dates to the 1930s, but Burroughs' John Carter of Mars and Tarzan both date to the early 1910s, and conform to an author appeal kind of thing for Burroughs in which real men fight boldly and unashamedly naked, except for the minimum concession to pulp illustration modesty of a loin cloth and harness. Frank Frazetta seems to have been on precisely the same wavelength, being exactly the right artist at about the right time to depict Tarzan, John Carter, and later Conan the Barbarian in Burroughs' image.

Tarzan probably needs no formal introduction to modern fantasy and sci-fi audiences, but here's a Frazetta depiction of John Carter and (I believe) his friend Dejah Thoris, a princess of Mars:

Here's Frazetta's Conan the Barbarian, which is almost certainly among the reference art that would have led to Schwarzeneger being cast as the cinematic Conan we all remember:

If I were to make a barbarian horde in this style from hard plastic bits I've already got on the shelf, I think bits from these kits these might be "close enough":

Wargames Atlantic "Dark Ages Irish" (these guys all wear trousers and are barefoot, but a few are shirtless and muscular)
Wargames Atlantic "Aztec Warriors" (the loincloths are a bit elaborate and they're barefoot, and many wear a sort of quilted armor, but there are some shirtless, muscular barbarian types in this kit!)
Wargames Atlantic "Citizens of Rome" (some of these muscular, shirtless gladiator types wear a sort of loincloth thing and some sturdy boots)
Northstar "Frostgrave Archipeligo Tribals" (stocky and doughy while cartoonishly muscular guys depicting pulp tropical island/jungle native types in loincloths and boots; the style is a little less realistic than WA's, and the weapons are more stone-age than Atlantean, but they're not far off from a pulp fantasy barbarian horde, and could easily be upgraded with fantasy swords and axes....)
Northstar "Frostgrave Barbarians" (the bodies are dressed in pretty sturdy winter hide armor and thus don't really fit the concept, but the heads and arms with fantasy swords, axes, and hammers would swap onto the "Tribals" bodies really nicely for a Cimmerean barbarian kitbash!)

For a dedicated kit, I think I'd like to see something aimed a little more closely at a Frazetta John Carter of Mars template, though.

Include a nice mix of battle-axes, Atlantean swords, Martian sabers, and "ray gun gothic" heat ray pistols and rifles, and optional holsters as add-on bits, and you've got a kit that doubles as both Classic Fantasy set and sci-fi Death Fields faction.

Furthermore, if you kitbash some WWI, WWII, pulp "modern", and post-apocalyptic weapons onto a bunch of muscular John Carter barbarian-in-harnesses types, and give them mohawk and mullet heads and sci-fi helmets or masks (easily included in the base set), then you basically end up with a Mad Max style wastelands gang. What would the Toecutter or Lord Humongous say???

"I am gravely disappointed. Again you have made me unleash my dogs of war!"

timbus the thirteenth

8/27/25, 4:08 PM

@Yronimos Whateley Ah, that wonderful blend of heroin, ignorance of nonwestern civilizations, and repressed bisexuality that makes turn-of-the-century pulp so wonderful! Yeah, I was looking at most of the kits you'd mentions as kitbash fodder, I just find it frustrating that such an iconic look has such a poor selection to choose from. I hadn't considered they'd make for good cyber-barbarians, though.... now my admech-playing brain is starting to churn....

Brian Van De Walker

8/28/25, 6:56 AM

@Yronimos Whateley I would be cool with lefthanded flintlock/percussion cap pistols and Uzis for the barbarians instead of rayguns if they need guns particularly if the target your aiming for is that "gothic SciFi Fantasy" setting with the most toxic fandom since those hammerheads keep asking for those options not rayguns🤣 (rayguns for barbians should be of the fluffy pulp varity, not gothic, gothic rayguns are for space nuns that cater to questionable fetishis😆).

Yronimos Whateley

8/29/25, 2:50 PM

You do you @Brian Van De Walker , but I didn't invent the term, it's over 40 years old by now, older than Warhammer, and the style itself is even older: Raygun Gothic

The hayday of the style itself is the sort of thing you'd see in pulp sci-fi dating especially from the 1930s to the 1950s, much older than Warhammer, and its going to be much more familiar to modern audiences from Star Trek, Star Wars, and the '80s Flash Gordon film (if you want to check off your questionable stuff, I guess). More recently it gets occasional attempts at revival in homages to earlier sci-fi and in the "Atom Punk" gimmick, and I approve, but it's mostly been out of fashion since the '80s.

I'm not picky on the specific models of the weapons, make them as multipurpose as possible and I'm good. If you need to use a real-world weapon as a base, Star Wars was one of the sci-fi/fantasy properties described as "Raygun Gothic", and the classic movie weapons, based on surplus world-war era guns given a sci-fi makeover, would work just as well for Death Fields, a John Carter pastiche, a Mad Max or other post-apocalyptic setting, or any sort of Buck Rogers, Flash Gordon, Star Wars, or other mid-century retro-futuristic thing - for example, Han Solo's pistol is clearly a Mauser C-96 with a couple greeblies tacked on:

Compare to this '30s era Buck Rogers toy, which would also get the "Raygun Gothic" description applied to it:

You could get as much mileage from something loosely inspired by a souped-up CZ-52,

Whitney Wolverine:

The Gyrojet pistol (a favorite of Doc Savage):

Or, a bit closer to John Carter's day, the Pettingill Revolver:

Lemat Revolver:

Mosin-Nagant Obrez:

Hell, even a jezail rifle like those from the WGA Afghans set could get a sci-fi makeover and work in post-apocalyptic and retro-scifi alike:

Tars Tarkas would approve:

Drop some doodly googie scopes and chrome and fins and flaring muzzle brakes on any of the above, or other gun with an over-the-top Art-Deco, '50s "space-age", or post-apocalptic look to it, and you'll be fine - let modelers clip off the excess if it doesn't fit a post-apocalyptic look quite right.

For my money, I'd be more than happy to just go full-steam mid-century Atomic Heat Ray as a side-order to fantasy Barbarian fare, and leave the historical guns to other kits and kitbashing:

Mario Bava's Planet of the Vampires (1965) - gothic scifi from before it was cool....

Believe it or not, both sci-fi and "gothic" date back just a LITTLE further than the 1980s and Warhammer 40K!

Mithril2098

8/29/25, 4:45 PM

personally, if they go this route, i'd make the 'scifi' bits like guns based off the Barsoom style of guns, so the kit can make either conan-clones or John carter expies.. in the books the guns fired "radium bullets" and what not but were described as being basically lighter and sleeker versions of the kinds of firearms Carter was already familiar with. which IMO means the Jezail rifle would probably work for a long gun (it's got enough of a otherworldly feel to it to start), while the pistols would probably resemble revolvers (perhaps pepperbox style?) or perhaps some form of muzzle loading caplock pistol.

this would probably push the bodies towards the 'harness and loincloth' look more than the fur speedo.. but having a chest harness would let you stick in some optional spiked shoulder pads for that extra "fantasy barbarian" flair.

timbus the thirteenth

8/29/25, 6:08 PM

Maybe a mix of both? Two fur speedos and four harnesses would be a good compromise, since it lets wga build off the existing digital sculpts. At the very least it would be a step up from the alternative, and could make a good base for kitbashes. Some fur capes to top it off, and hey presto! A wonderful modular kit lots of people can use.

MD

Mark Dewis

9/12/25, 1:37 AM

I hate to say it, but probably the closest kit in plastic is GW's old Chaos Marauders, which have been bought back for the Old World revival. US$84.00 for 32.

Chaos Marauders

timbus the thirteenth

9/14/25, 1:36 PM

@Mark Dewis Man, modern GW pricing schemes suck. 84 bucks plus tariffs for 32 models just feels so bleh, especially when said models are probably older than I am. I did forget about these guys, though, so thanks! I might see if I can snag a couple cheap.

MD

Mark Dewis

10/16/25, 1:11 AM

US$2.60 a figure isn't awful. Most places won't need to pay shipping bcos GW, so there is that.

List price here is AUD$150; I can get it delivered free, or pick it up at the Wahammer shop. AUD$4.68 per figure.

A box of 24 WGA Town militia works out to be around AUD$82 with postage - AUD$3.41 per figure.

Prices are up all over.

timbus the thirteenth

10/16/25, 1:57 PM

The difference is, $3.41pm WGA town militia gets you a shitton of bits and options, modern sculpts, and can be easily kitbashed with other models. Same is true for victrix, warlord, perry, any company thats not gw. If I get the marauders, then I'm dumping a couple month's worth of disposable income (college student) into a kit with a handful of identically posed bodies and like 2 head types. Which sucks because I REALLY REALLY like the design, its just nowhere near worth the cost. I've settled for some WGA celts for now, since it comes with stuff I can use for a couple projects. Thanks anyways, though.

Brian Van De Walker

10/21/25, 2:13 AM

@Mark Dewis Given the going price for most non-GW options with the same number or more of models is $30.00 to $45.00 USD normally ($50.00 on rarer occasions and I am pretty sure thats factoring in tariffs since Sheild Wolf, one of the more costly plastics in the US would be around $1.75 USD a mini if thier store price was the only thing you paid), and those tend to have more parts on the sprue, nah GW is scalping folks and using offical seal as an excuse to do so cuase they know thier cultists will pay that much (in a just world no one would buy anything from them, let the old world stay dead😆).

Brian Van De Walker

10/21/25, 2:35 AM

@Yronimos Whateley Starwars, Flash Gordan, Buck Rogers, and John Carter from the 19th century to present are all fluffly heroic adventure PULP scifi (or even fulffy SciFi high fantasy), not gothic at all which when assocation with scifi is all about nihillistic edgelord grimdrepness with a side of horror that comes off as a botch attempt at satire at this point if it hasn't always been that outside of the architectural style.

timbus the thirteenth

10/22/25, 9:59 AM

unfortunately, warhammer proxies sell well. hopefully stuff like marcher and trench crusade will break that up a bit? as it is though, WGA would be leaving money on the table by not making them at least little compatible with the GW aesthetic.

btw, it's nice to have a fellow GW hater in these forums. I love warhammer the setting, but hoolllly shit the actual models are such an insane ripoff it drives me nuts. the sooner that monopoly get broken up a little, the better.

timbus the thirteenth

10/23/25, 6:30 PM

As an addition to the post, I was reading the original savage sword of conan marvel run and was taking some screenshots for inspiration. such a cool setting and vibe that would work great for wargaming, imp.

Brian Van De Walker

10/24/25, 7:08 AM

@timbus the thirteenth To be fair, making them "a little GW compatable"(for WFB anyways) is simply doing typical shirtless muscle bound Conan barabain types, the only thing GW did was double down on the skulls and add "arrow burst" chaos symboles. For 40k, I recommend box macs for "not bolters" unless the lasguns are the listed standard weapon (in which I would argue for a full on seperate set, two arm weapon poses are big space takers and kind of a questionable options).

Marco

10/25/25, 4:12 PM

I would like to add my voice to this (for what it's worth.) Along with a female set also. I've been reading a bit of John Carter again recently and I have the masculine urge to paint some scantily-clad, red-skinned Barsoomian babes.

timbus the thirteenth

10/25/25, 6:08 PM

believe me, that was gonna be my next crusade! hopefully in the future i can fulfill my perfectly heterosexual desire for an army of red sonjas. sadly the existing digital female barbarian leaves a lot to be desired. it's a weird sort of fuzzy one piece with a bunch of strange cuts that just looks silly.

Brian Van De Walker

10/26/25, 1:39 AM

Oddly enough, and I know I have mentioned it before but 1 scantily clad chick set could cover alot of things if done right: Dark Elves, wild/wood elves, Amazons (the more useful jungle varity), female barbarians, particular female adventurer types (rogues and some spellcasters come to mind), etc. (there are other things).

The only issues I see happing with it is long hair which tends to lead to 2 part headswaps. I like some shorter cuts to a point (sisters of battle PB cut is good) but I am tired of seeing bald and dreadlock mowhawks for female plastics (sure they are easy to mold, but why?).

timbus the thirteenth

10/26/25, 10:12 PM

honestly, with how hard it is to kitbash female-looking models, that kinda kit would go pretty hard. i think i'd prefer a couple different kits, though (barbarians that look rough, dark elves that look sleek and glamorous, etc)