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Those are interesting.
Are you trying to create a custom shape for an existing figure? (For example, Genesis 8)
Or are you asking about rigging your own custom props?
My first thought it to find a way to use the face of an existing figure. Probably a Gen 8 figure or a Toon Generations with some exaggerated adjustments. If I could find a cowl that would move with different facial expressions, then I could simply create the arms from a second figure and parent everything together. So the problem is creating different shaped body/cowls...pointy for pawns, tapered for Bishop, and brick-like for Castles...but I could always adjust that design element.
I don't have much experience modifying existing figures, but I learned the hard way to keep the figure "intact". I created a couple of bobbleheads for a scene, (here, if you're interested,) and with the female, I removed bones and mesh to create just a head. Big mistake.
For what you want to do, I think you can make the torso and legs very small and move them into the big head, at the same time you make the head big enough to go below the height of the collar and shoulders. You'd need to keep the width of the torso at the collar so the arms fit on either side of the head.
The "base" of the piece could be a prop, or maybe a clothing item for the head. But clothing would be conforming, and change with the head morph. I assume those will be variable, depending on which chess piece. Maybe a combination of both, so an unchanging base that all pieces have in common, (that would be different than your sample pieces,) plus the clothing to create the variations from pawn to king. Just tossing out ideas.
There are real modelers in these forums. I'm just not sure where to direct you, for the specific help you'll need.
Thanks for your tips. I'm not too worried about the body/legs as they can be made invisible by zeroing the opacity on those parts. It's the cowl/base parts that I'd need to sort out. Perhaps even making them in Blender and importing them. The wouldn't need any bones which would make things easier. I would have to assign some form of material.
There's free obj files you can find everywhere that are just a head or bust situated on a base. You could place your own figure over the obj head and parent the object. I'm not sure if it would fit what you're looking for though. Also free props and props you can find in the really old kits that are dirt cheap might have columns and similar stone structures that might fit your needs. You can just scale them down as needed and parent them to your figures head or whatever. Here's a few I found in my props folder from old kits, also a mannequin stand/stand with head & arms parented, and a free obj head/bust sculpted with a base.