Taargus is one of the core party members in our D&D campaign. My character (a Lawful Good Paladin of Ioun) saved Taargus and is now on the receiving end of a year-long honor debt from this towering Goliath worshiper of Bane (and unwitting agent of Vecna) whether my character likes it or not. Taargus enjoys large game hunting, and has never skipped on opportunity to seek out a new kill when given the chance. After particularly important kills, he hobbles another piece of hide onto his armor - one such piece being the white dragon neck scales adorning the hide plackart across his stomach. Coveted most among his possession - followed closely by his ax - is a magic invisible ring. Although invisible, its hold on him is visible by the blood stained finger on his left hand into which ring's claws itself.

Recipe:
Right Arm & Leg, Torso, Head - DCU Despero BAF
Left Arm - DCU Atom Smasher BAF
Left Leg - DCU Bane BAF
Butt Cape - DCU Raven
Ax and Armor - 100% Apoxie

While many of the DCU Build-A-Figures have the same base sculpt, they differ in their joints and detailing. The Atom Smasher arm was an easy fix in that the connecting peg simply needed to be cut down to fit the smaller hole in the torso. The leg of the Bane BAF had a smaller peg which needed to be built up, and a combat boot which was first ground down, then built back up to match the detail and folds on the other boot. Next, both legs were sculpted with Apoxie to cover up the details which made the figure look like he was wearing pants. This was achieved primarily by adding the fur boot detail. Next the loin cloth and hide/fur thigh guards were added by sculpting apoxie.

As for the upper body, the head was modified to look more Goliath like - removed Despero's dorsal fin and filled in some of the more gnarled features to make it look less sinister (but only slightly so being he still worships/works for evil gods). The plackart is actually removable and was also made with apoxie. This was done by letting the shape set as a flat piece for about an hour, before forming it over the body, and then then removing it to set firm. The dragon scale detail was sculpted on once firm. The pauldrons were done in same way (except over top of the chest guard which was sculpted right onto the body prior) and then detailed a little before they set. The pauldrons were then glued to the body - meaning they are fixed in place but allow for full articulation of the shoulder joints. The fur patch on top of the right pauldron, and the leather straps connecting the pauldrons to each other and the chest plate were again sculpted from apoxie. The bracers were sculpted right onto the body, straps and all, in stages. The plate belt came with the Despero torso and was reused with only a little modification. The butt cape is the rear half of the DCU Raven figure's cape - being much more covering in her case (in case anyone is wondering, the loin cloth turns into a leather thong around the backside - no pictures were added to keep this site family friendly).

As I couldn't find an ax to fit the scale of this character, I sculpted one from apoxie. The head of the ax was ground super smooth, while the handle is literally a roll of apoxie left to dry, then carved with razor blades and sculpting knives once hard. The straps cover any gaps between the pieces, and serve enhance the hobbled together look of Taargus' gear.

The painting took some time, especially trying to detail all of the body markings. Goliaths believe their markings indicate the course of their life. While not all Goliaths are fatalists, most at least believe qualities of a Goliath are apparent by looking at the markings. Their markings are generally symmetric is shape, but differ in detail left to right (i.e. the shape is the same, but it shouldn't be a perfect mirror image as the edges of the shapes should vary slightly). The markings are more fine is smaller extremities, and larger in scale in the torso and legs. All of these principles were applied to the paint job, including making sure there were markings over the eyes to symbolize a more darker outlook on the world - which seemed appropriate for Taargus. The paint job extends below the removable plackart and under the butt cape. The rest of the body was painted to resemble hide armor lined with fur, the fur being mostly white after having spent the last large portion of the campaign in a winter setting. The final detail is the blood stained middle finger of the left hand into which his invisible ring has clawed itself. The ring bites him from time to time to let it know it is displeased, or to infuse him with psionic energy which turns his ax into a psychic damage dealing ax (accessory to come later) in order to fulfill Venca's evil deeds.