Fallout Miniatures Part Three: Super Mutants!

Okay, so we've discussed vault dwellers and raiders, both fairly generic concepts in post apocalyptic settings.  But today we are talking about one of the most iconic concepts of the Fallout universe; super mutants.

'Sup?

Super mutants are one of the most recognizable and emblematic enemies in the Fallout universe, and let's face it, if you want to play Fallout on the tabletop, you want super mutant minis.

Before we begin, I want to discuss color schemes.  I never played the original two PC games of Fallout, so my vision of super mutants comes from Fallout 3 and New Vegas.  I do know that in the original games, the super mutants were a deep olive green shade, while the ones in Fallout 3 were that sickly yellow hue because they were made using a separate strain of FEV from Vault 87.  So only those mutants found in the Capital Wasteland should have the jaundiced pallor, and others elsewhere should have the green tone of the Master's army (as well as the Enclave's batch.)

I am running my game in Texas, with plenty of super mutant remnants from the Master's army, and I am painting them yellow.  I went back and forth on this a bit, and went with artistic license.  I just think the Fallout 3 coloration looks better and more...mutanty.  You of course are welcome to paint them as you please.

As usual, I will start with a bunch of 'other ideas' that others have suggested, and then proceed to ignore them and give you my own (usually Heroclix-based) solution.  Ready?  Here we go.

One of the most popular solutions I have seen on the interwebz is to use Orks from Warhammer 40K.  Personally, I don't recommend this for a few reasons.  First off, there is the matter of scale.  Looking at the difference in size between orks (or orcs, if you play fantasy,) they are larger and beefier than a normal human (using figures from their own line,) but I just don't feel they are massive enough to represent the size of super mutants to normal humans.

From left to right: a 40K Nob (one of the biggest ones they make,) a standard fantasy orc, a Necromunda ganger, and two of my Heroclix raiders (two of the smaller, older ones.)

As you can see from the picture, even the larger black orc simply isn't big enough to accurately represent a super mutant.  If one looks at the super mutants in game, they look size Large to me.  That means a 2" (50mm) space.  And the orc(k)s are not that big.

In addition, take a look at how the heads attach:

The heads jut out from their breastbones, which not only makes them look unlike the super mutants in the game, but it also makes swapping heads difficult, and you will almost certainly want to do so, since their facial features look nothing like the super mutants.

So I don't really recommend orcs of either spelling for this purpose.  Now GW does make a better alternative in the form of the ogryns, sci fi ogres from Warhammer 40K.

For scale, those are round 40mm bases they are mounted upon (photo courtesy of Gardenninja.com, I did not paint these, sad to say.)

As you can see, visually they work well, with piecemeal armor and big guns.  And they are designed for 40mm or 50mm bases, so the size ratio works too.  However, they are pewter, which makes extensive modification slightly more challenging, and then there is the matter of price.  Games Workshop is not exactly known as the 'bargain basement' brand of metal minis.  Each of these fine fellows will set you back over $20 American, assuming you buy them from the manufacturer.  Of course you could find them cheaper on Ebay (sometimes,) but I doubt they will ever be a 'steal' of a price there.  So because I am a very cheap individual, I can't really recommend this one either.

Now GW's fantasy line has some more affordable ogres that can be converted as well.  They come as a multi part plastic boxed set, and have the same basic dimensions as the sci fi ogryns.

Here are two made from the regular sprues in the set.

Now you get six ogres in the box, and the set currently runs for $40.  That makes each one almost seven bucks apiece, which is better than twenty, but still not super cheap.

I myself had a box from a while ago for use in fantasy games, so I have begun to convert one to use as a super mutant.  The pros of these figs are price (not too bad, at least,) and that fact that they are multipart polystyrene kits.  These two facts make modifications a snap.

But there are a few downsides.  Most of the heads have copious facial hair, in a very 'mongol' style, which clashes with the bald super mutants.  There is only one bald head, and one with only a goatee that could be easily trimmed (the two shown above.)  The rest will require varying levels of modification if you want to go for that 'real' super mutant look.

Another problem is that ogres in Warhammer Fantasy have a culture and biology that revolves around consumption, and the minis reflect that.  They have huge guts, strapped under armored 'gut plates,' and some less than imposing pectorals, that seem to be in need of some support undergarments.  Now, speaking as someone who looks like a devotee of the Great Maw myself, I don't want to cast aspersions on my wide-girthed brethren, but the plastic ogres are a lot more 'jovial' than the super mutants we know and love.

Further causing difficulties in that regard, is the proportions of the minis.  For all their height, the ogres look like big dwarfs.  Look at their width to height ratio, and how long their legs are compared to their torso length.  So if one wants to use these as is. they will make fine mutants of the correct size (maybe they were formerly residents of Vault 10 before being exposed to FEV?) but if you want to make them even more accurate, some modification is in order.  There are ways to accomplish that, but we will discuss them in a separate post.

Of course, there are plenty of other sources of ogres to use as super mutants.  If you can find some suitable minis from other toy or game lines, try to imagine how they could be converted or simply repainted.

This is a selection of dudes I already had lying around.  From left to right: a D&D Miniatures hill giant, the Ogre Champion from an ancient wargame called Battlemasters, an ogre from another old game called Dark World, and finally a clay golem from Reaper's Bones line.

And don't forget using scale tricks.  If you can find an action figure or PVC collectible figurine that works in scale, consider that as well.

But you must be wondering, 'why hasn't he mentioned his beloved Heroclix?  Is this finally a task that is beyond the realm of clixification?"

Well fear not true believers, for the clix world has one thing that is perfect for your super mutant needs:

HULKS!

There are at least a dozen different versions of the Incredible Hulk in the Heroclix line, and nearly every new Marvel set has another version.  Plus there are 'Hulk-like' figures that can likewise be converted into excellent super mutants.

Plus many more! (photo courtesy of Marvel.com)

Most of them are wearing only torn shorts and lots of muscles (Dr. Banner's usual ensemble,) which fits nicely with the fashion sensibilities of Fallout super mutants.  Nearly all of them are unarmed, with their fists clenched tight, but a savvy modder could easily equip them with a melee weapon (having them hold a ranged weapon will usually take some more extensive modification, due to their posing, but is still managable with some practice.)  There is some variation in sizes, and this can also create some nice variety (more on different-sized mutants later.)  Consider this guy:

(Factory standard paint job)

Simply scrape off the hair, repaint to your favorite mutant color scheme, and voila!  Super mutant.  For extra fanciness, you can even equip your new mutant (not those New Mutants) with a Fallout-inspired weapon and add some appropriate armor bits to make it blend in even more.

Behold!  A super mutant!
Yes, that IS a super sledge he's holding, and no, he's NOT happy to see you...

If you go on Ebay, you can find plenty of Hulks to use, and they are fairly easy to convert.  In no time, you can have an army of super mutants to threaten your players.  There are also a few 'special' figures in the range than can be used to make some unique super mutant variants, but that is a post for another time...

However, I have recently found another source for Hulks to convert.  A few years ago, they started putting out a line of little plastic figures of the Marvel super heroes.  They are called "Handful of Heroes" and they come in a package of eight for between seven and nine bucks.  The package is clear, so you can pick a selection that has what you want, except for the eighth figure, who is secret and random (you can usually peek through the corner of the package and tell who it is anyway.)

As you can see, the sculpting is not bad at all for kid's toys.

These are more or less in scale with heroclix, with the 'regular sized' guys (Spidey, Cap, Iron Man, etc.) being a little on the big side.  Unfortunately, the larger guys like the Hulks, who should be larger, are on par with the other guys in the line, which actually makes them a little small for gaming purposes.  But there are like half a dozen different Hulks, and even if they look a little bit shrimpy for super mutants, they still give off enough sense of massiveness to work when mounted on an appropriate base.

Just as will other Hulk figures, you will need to trim away the hair (unless you are planning on sculpting a helm or some such.)  Along with trimming the mold lines (a must for this line,) this is made more difficult by the soft PVC they are made of.

Here are some of the 'big' figures, which are about the same size as the others.  In front we have "Mindless Hulk" to the left, and "World War Hulk" to the right.  These seemed perfect for my needs, so I removed their hair, and used dressmaker's pins to make that hunk of wood into a nailboard.

Here are the final results:

Now, I could have added all kinds of details such as armor and trophies and such, to make them look more "Fallout," but I wanted to keep it simple.  They fit fine onto a 40mm base, and while they don't entirely tower over their opponents, they give a good impression of size.

One of the best things about using the Handful of Heroes Hulks?  I can give the leftover figs to my son and daughter to play with.  They love 'em.

So these are some ways to amass your army of super mutants.  But in Fallout, these foes come in a variety of sizes.  What if you want some models of super mutant brutes, masters, overlords or (dare I even suggest,) BEHEMOTHS?

Stay tuned true believers, I've got you covered,  I will show you how to add height and mass to the models we discussed, and make them even more impressive.  But that will have to wait...

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