A Problem of Warbeasts and Warengines

Hi!

Well I have the morning off work so I've spent my time rummaging around through my bits boxes to see if I have any more suitable stuff for either my 15mm or 6mm forces.

Happily I have indeed found some unexpected additions! For my 15mm Dwarf force, I have a couple of the master castings I received from CP Models a while back:

Forge Guard

I sculpted them up some time ago and sold them on but CP Models kindly sent me one of each! I plan on buying a few more of the fellows to convert as they turned out quite nicely!

 Crossbows

They've been sat painted but unbased for quite a while now so I figured it might be handy to get them finished and will post some pics of them tomorrow.

CP Models also bought my Carnosaurs, who will be getting some re-enforcements soon too, both as wild monstrous creatures but also acting as mounts for my Tribal Goblins:

Carnosaurs!

Further rummaging located me several more bits and bobs which are currently getting based and ready to paint, including a squadron of Wargolems for my Dwarves in 6mm scale, ably proxied by some Mage Knight Metal Golems:

The Smallest Golem they produce looked good for a decent sided construct in 15mm scale but far more imposing in 6mm. Handily I have three of them so once they've been painted, I will have some good hard hitting assault units for my Dwarves!

Speaking of which, I'm quite tempted by their other offerings too:

 Steam Golem

Storm Golem

With a little work, I can foresee either of these sculpts making quite nice heavy and assault Wargolems!

Speaking of which, I have been pondering the possibility of fielding some larger warbeasts in my 15mm scale gaming so I can play out some larger skirmishes as well as the more warband based games and have run into a bit of a wall with locating suitable proxy miniatures for some of the races. 

Ironically the Dwarves are spoiled for choice as theres lots of from the likes of Privateer Press for Wargolem proxies, especially the likes of Khador:

Imagine one of these monsters in 15mm scale and handily, the axe and stubby legs make them perfect for a Dwarven inspired metal behemoth!

Similarly, Black Hat has some really excellent 15mm scale steamtanks:

With minimal conversion work, both of these could easily be incorporated into the Technomancer Guild expeditions and shouldn't be too difficult to use to represent any of the common Dwarven tank designs, be it the Thunderhammer, Iron Drake or Rapier.

For the likes of the Orcs though, pickings are a little bit thinner but I did spot these chaps who might do as smaller warbeasts for my Orcs to ride into battle on:

Imagine Having an Orc hanging onto the back of one of them! I suspect theres going to have to be a considerable amount of googling go on until I find something suitable for their larger warbeasts or I am going to have to sculpt them myself!

Needless to say, if anyone has any suggestions, I'd love to hear them as my Aeroth project begins to gear up in preparation of the upcoming campaign season when the snows melt and the Orcs once again attack up the Axebite pass!

All the best!

Pinecliff

Founded by the Dragonlords over a thousand years ago when relations with the Dwarves were more cordial, Pinecliff lies high in the Western Axeblades on the banks of the Green River. It is ruled by the Skylark family who have for centuries been loyal vassals of the Elves, providing a trading centre with the peoples of the surrounding region and sending their sons to fight in the Elven armies. Since the Death, the Skylarks have had to strike out on their own as their former masters have fallen to evil.

Pinecliff

Lying in a narrow valley, Pinecliff's architecture has developed a unique look of its own with what little space there is to build upon literally covered in multi story buildings, seemingly thrown up at random with houses, workshops, bakeries and all manner of dwellings jammed in together. Much of the towns food comes from the river and fishing while extensive use of terracing above the town has provided enough space to produce a decent crop and hunters often venture into the surrounding woods to trap and stalk game for their pelts and meat. 

Side channel of the Green River, known as the Street of Lanterns

Fortunately, the town lies in a sheltered valley which has protected it from the worst of the Death but the new world the humans find themselves in is an unforgiving one. Pinecliff is surrounded to the North, East and South by near impenetrable mountain peaks and broken cliffs while to the West, the Green River flows down a series of steep canyons before flowing out into the ruins of the Elven domains.

The Axeblades seen from Pinecliff

In times past, Pinecliff was a frontier town between the Elves and the Dwarves and the skies were once filled with skyships and blimps transporting goods and valuables back and forth but the glory days are past. The docking pylons were demolished in one of the many earthquakes that followed the Death and trade has almost dried up.

Ruined Pylons

Similarly, the great cyclopian gates to the Dwarven realm have been sealed at the headwaters of the Green River but trade has begun on a limited scale between the Dwarves and Humans by using the high forested paths that lead deep into the mountains.

The Skylarks are currently ruled by Augustinia, the widow of the last lord Marius. Although no warrior, she has a shrewd business sense and is desperate to form a more permanent alliance with her mountain neighbours as she is fully aware that the meagre army under her control is no match for the many foes her people now face in the post Death world.

Hidden Dell near the Dwarven realms

The Dwarves, always a taciturn race, have been slow to respond to her overtures as they still mistrust the Humans, especially those who followed the Elves but common sense has led several of the local Dwarven Lords to send caravans West to trade their mineral wealth for food and agricultural supplies and the Skylarks have dealt with them honourably. No doubt come the thawing of the snows, fresh caravans will begin wending their way along the hidden pathways between the two peoples.

In response, the Skylarks have sent a larger expedition to Kareth Dull and have wintered there having been trapped by the onset of winter having delivered a sizable supply of grain to the Dwarves. 

The pathways themselves have become increasingly dangerous to travel following the Death and the Skylarks have formed the Ranger Corps, a regiment of woodsmen who travel its shadowy ways in small groups to keep it clear of the various wild beasts and monstrous creatures that inhabit the surrounding mountains. It is a dangerous job but one the Rangers take great pride in.

 One of the forest routes linking Pinecliff with the outside world

The Skylarks have faced many tribulations over the last two centuries but have adapted well to Aeroths strange new state remarkably well but at great personal cost. Marius was killed a decade ago in a skirmish between his ranger militia and a raiding party of Elven slavers who had infiltrated the remote land. Similarly both of Augustinia's sons have died in battle but the formidable matriarch has thus far held her people together by sheer force of will. 

A Ranger navigates the pine forests above Pinecliff

Following the attack, a pair of fortified towers now guard the towns Western approach. Named Skylark and Earhdell, they are constantly manned and sport a number of light ballistas of Dwarven manufacture have been installed to dissuade further raids.

The Green River just to the west of Pinecliff

The towns defences are separated into several small regiments, each with their own names and traditions and all fanatically loyal to the town and the Skylarks. Other than the Ranger Corps, the towns best warriors are the Order of Helm. Numbering only a dozen or so, these templars are the descendants of a group of Knights of the Eternal Light who were once stationed in the town before the Death and swore an oath to protect the town and its people until the Angry god returns. Over two centuries later, these stalwart knights still uphold their ancestors oath.

Pinecliff Militia

In times of need, the population of the town will also rally to the call to defend their homes and it is almost unheard of for any of the population to be seen unarmed.

  

Human Rabble and More Horned Folk

Hi!

Well a day off from work has been well spent by getting some painting done. While waiting for my Ral Partha order to turn up, I had a rummage through my 15mm bits boxes and found the remains of my old Crucible project and thought that it would be a bit of a waste not to use them in my Aeroth one.

 Human Rabble

I must admit I haven't put much thought into the human population of Aeroth, other than the untamed Barbarians of the far north but these chaps do look rather good and will be forming the basis for the inhabitants of the settlement of Pinecliff, ably ruled by the Skylark family.

Shield Detail

The miniatures themselves are Demonworld with a couple of conversions by myself. I believe Werner Klocke sculpted the range originally and he's put amazing amounts of detail on the little chaps, including eyes, eyelids and even tiny fingernails!

I still have another seven to paint up and need to rummage out the swordsmen too but I also have a couple of medium warbeasts for them to use and it will allow me to begin expanding my background to the Western reaches of the Axeblade Mountains too.

Next up, I managed to get a stand of Horned Folk and Beastkin finished too so my 6mm force is beginning to take shape:

Horned Folk Progress

During my bits box rummaging I found a load of Irregular Miniatures 6mm fantasy stuff including a fairly large lesser Goblin force (the same figures as I showed earlier but handily unpainted and unbased)

Lesser Goblins

These will allow me to create a decent sized tribe of free Goblins which should be fun. Theres also a good sized force of Orcs and even some Elves and a couple of Dwarven Wargolems to boot so I have plenty to keep me entertained and my Aeroth project is really beginning to build up steam.

My next objective will be to see about getting some terrain done. I have found a large stash of old till roll tubes that I have been saving from work over the last twelve months which will be getting turned into a larger version of the basalt columns that can be seen above and I also want to try my hand at making some cacti and hardy trees too so I can start making the world a bit more interesting.

 Tribal Goblin Sacred Rock Site

Some is going to be rather easy to produce as I have a fair amount of pebbles and rocks kicking around as well as bits of foam and so on but I think making some of the vegetation is going to be a bit more complex as I want to avoid going for the usual hobby approach of using the rather fake looking Train set type of trees which bear no resemblance to any form of wild vegetation!

 Desert Vegetation

I'm also fascinated by the colours of the desert and a post apocalyptic fantasy one means I can really push the boat out and create something a bit special!

Hardy Desert Tree

Hopefully I will be able to get some more updates onto the blog this week expanding the setting and its inhabitants and maybe even one or two more miniatures!

All the best!

Thoughts on Aeroth Terrain

Hi!

I've been looking back over my old Leviathan blog and am rather taken with some of the concepts I was developing before giving up.

One of the immediately noticeable differences between Aeroth and say, the Warhammer world is that I have tried to steer clear of the typical fantasy fare where most games are set in a faux medieval western European world. I really want to introduce a more visually appealing type of game to be playing, populated by a mixture of deserts, mesas, rock outcrops and all manner of desert flora.

Along side this I have vaguely remembered notions of some more exotic terrain, be it obsidian pillars, strange vegetation or whatever suitably warped and unusual stuff I can think of and looking at some of my old photos, theres plenty to be getting on with!

Mesas, Crystal Deposits and Implausible, Floating Trees!  

Sadly, I think I had to chuck out most of my terrain when I moved house from Worcester to Portsmouth so I will have to start from scratch but at least have lots of pictures, notes and scribbles to be going on with.

Polished Obsidian Rock Piles

I must admit I have ranted in the past about my obsession with creating some more original and interesting scenery elements that better reflect a world devastated by an apocalyptic release of wild magic but must admit that having my own man cave makes the possibility of actually producing some of it a bit more likely!

I think I need to have a peruse of the likes of Terragenesis for some inspiration and then have a bash at making something for my Dwarves and Orcs to fight over!

In other news, I have decided to cheat slightly with my project! Instead of sculpting and casting everything myself, I have ordered some of the Demonworld gubbins from Ral Partha Europe to allow me to actually get some stuff painted up for each race and allow campaign season to actually start in a more timely fashion. I still plan on sculpting up all manner of bits and bobs to represent specific characters and lots of monsters too!

I've ordered the following stuff to get me going:

 Northern Barbarians

 Goblin Hunters

 Dwarven Veterans

Orc Marauders

I realise the concept isn't quite as I'd envisioned but with the application of a little putty, they should all look the part! The Dwarves will be getting tusked helmets for example and the Goblins will be getting lots of feather head dresses while the Orcs will be getting the traditional fur hats added.

Hopefully by using this approach, I will be able to field some small raiding parties by the end of January or early February with games to follow. I will also post a mini review of the forces when they arrive. You may notice that the Elves are currently missing but I need to flesh out their background before buying any!

In 6mm news, I have almost finished a second Horned Folks base and will be rummaging out my lino boards to take some decent pictures of the force as it slowly expands!

All the best!

Horned Folk Test Pieces

Hi!

Well I finally finished painting up some test pieces for my Horned Folk army in 6mm scale!

First up theres my Horned Folk character stand, in this case a couple of old Epic Minotaurs, one of which has had his axe replaced with a banner:

 Horned Folk Character Stand

The idea is to make the characters immediately recognisable from a distance and as they are going to average from 6-10mm tall, this requires a nice big standard.

Next up some Beastkin, the Horned Folks regular soldier caste, again proxied by some old Epic Beastmen:

Beastkin Stand

As the Horned Folk are from the ancient past of Aeroth, I wanted to give them a sense of age so the figures wield bronze weapons and their banners are old and crusty looking too and I must admit I quite like the effect.

Looking through my bits boxes, I have enough to field eight stands of Beastkin and six of Horned Folk which will give me a decent core force. The next step will be to sculpt up some warbeasts for them to ride round on and add a pleasing focal point to the army!

Finally, I finished painting an Orc last week when I first started this blog and the result was what decided me on the 15mm/6mm approach:

Orc Berzerker

Looking at the photo, he's not too bad but I spent absolutely AGES on him and the result still isn't up to the standard I'd like. Maybe it was the use of a white undercoat rather than my usual black but I just can't see the point of putting so much effort into painting one figure when I could be working through three or four 15mm or a couple of bases of 6mm instead with far more pleasing results!

Hopefully my next post will feature a few more completed bases of Horned Folk and maybe even a warbeast or two!

All the best!

Painting Progress

Hi!

Well I am busy doing a six day stretch with work with the added fun of an overnight shift during it too but I have been rummaging through my 6mm stuff for something to get on with painting until I get a day off so I can get on with sculpting stuff!

The result has left me with an intriguing possibility in the form of 40 of the old Epic Beastmen and about thirty plastic Minotaurs! Although I'd hoped to get some Orcs or Dwarves painted up first, I thought to myself I would try and get what I have painted while deciding on whether I wanted to order anything else so its looking like my first 6mm army for Aeroth will actually be the Horned Folk.

I currently have a test base almost complete and by end of play tonight hope to have it ready for a quick photo in the next day or too (daylight permitting!) and must admit that the old GW epic plastics are once again proving to be superb quality.

In the world of Aeroth, the Horned Folk are one of the near mythical Elder Races that the Elves supposedly drove into extinction during the Age of Legends some ten thousand years ago. However the Horned Folk survived after a fashion by retreating to their great Barrows, deep in the forested north east of the continent and have slumbered away the following centuries.

 Snowclad Forest

With the coming of the Death, the Horned Folk have been re-awakened and have begun to reconquer their ancestral lands from the tribes of Human Barbarians who now occupy it. This expansion has brought them into contact with both the Orcish Horde to the East and South and the Dwarves to the West and the brutish and savage nature of the Horned Folks has resulted in several border skirmishes already and full blown warfare has only been averted by the harshness of the winter.

In appearance, the Horned Folk look much like an amalgam of humanoid and great bulls. Standing up to a dozen feet high, the Horned Folk have great bull like heads, sprouting powerful horns, often adorned with intricately worked golden and bronze jewellery. 

Their bodies are covered in a coarse fur and their barrel chests and powerful limbs stand mute testimony to their physical strength. Centuries of sleeping in the cold embrace of the earth has altered many of them as tree roots have entwined themselves around their bodies and even consumed some of their elders entirely. 

Horned Folk Territory

In battle they wield heavy bladed bronze exes, maces and swords from another age and with their savage strength, they are fully capable of cleaving even a fully armoured Dwarf in two or crushing an Orcish skull with a single blow. 

Worshippers of a nameless Prince of the Fallen, the Horned Folk have no concept of peace and live for war, their great warriors wish only to slay for their god and bring slaves back to toil in their fields or fight in their armies. This attitude has not not made them popular with the Barbarians, many small tribes of whom have been slaughtered or driven into slavery but the Horned Folk are an elemental race, returned from the mists of time to reclaim an ancient empire.

Alongside their Minotaur nobles, resplendent in their bronze armour, march ranks of lesser Horned kin, smaller, man sized beastmen who serve their masters as a race of warriors. Well trained and disciplined, the Horned Kin form the bulk of raiding parties and also drive the lowly slaves into battle before them.

The centuries of sleep and invasion of trees into some of the most ancient barrows have deprived many of the elder Horned Folk of their bodies but their spirits now inhabit the soil, rocks and trees of the land and they can be raised to fight as great and terrible elemental creatures, often dwarfing even the mightiest Minotaur noble. These beings are revered as avatars of the Horned Folks god and are often adorned with small idols and their great misshapen bodies are bedecked with golden torcs, bronze breastplates inlaid with precious stones and even trophies of defeated foes.

Hopefully as I get on with the painting I will get chance to flesh out their background a bit and hope to bring a bit an overview of some of their conflicts with the other races!

All the best!

What About Farpoint?

Greetings!

Well my Aeroth project seems to be off to a good start and its fantastic to re-explore the gubbins I scribbled down a few years back when I originally attempted gaming Leviathan.

What of Farpoint though? Looking back at my original post for this blog, I get the decided impression that I didn't know what I wanted to do with it back then either and its floated aimlessly on for almost two years in a similar manner!

Looking at my rather inept attempts at painting and collecting over the intervening time, I must admit the stand out figures have been the varied assortment of Epic stuff I painted all the way back in 2012!

I dont know why, but they strike a bit of a chord with me, harking back to the halcyon days of high school and Epic where vast armies of tiny, unpainted plastic men and tanks fought desperate battles for cardboard towerblocks.

The amount of detail and speed of painting combine to provide a very satisfying finish without having to spend hours slaving over each model and as I have literally hundreds of the little fellows, I think I am going to spend a little time in 2014 painting up some more.

Sadly Epic has already become the preserve of the hardcore collector and bargains are nigh on impossible to come by these days but I reckon I have enough to play around with and I have a hankering to play out some larger scale battles.

I doubt there will be many huge games played but I do want to complete a couple of battle companies to shoot each other up and I am very keen to represent some more of the classic Marine Chapters such as the Blood Angels, Dark Angels and Spacewolves as time allows. Handily I have about fifty rhinos and goodness knows how many tactical marines sat in a box in the flat somewhere so I don't foresee having to spend much to complete the project!

Rules wise, I am not too sure at present. The old 2nd edition of Space Marine is seen as many as a classic but I have always been fond of the much maligned Epic 40000 as its streamlined rules were so simple and playable! 

  

Having perused my unpainted boxes of bits, I find that I actually have enough gubbins to get several forces put together for each of the main races, including Squats and Chaos which is nice.

The one thing that the project is missing is the large titans and metal vehicles that GW released over the years but for the most part I'm not too unhappy about giving them a miss as the prices on Ebay for even the most common are frankly preposterous!

Handily, the 6mm scifi market is awash with far more recent, and most of the time more reasonably priced stuff that will make do as proxies so I don't find myself bemoaning the fact I can't get a decent Eldar Bright Stallion or Towering Destroyer!

It may be a bit of a slow process as I suspect my gaming time is going to be at a premium and Aeroth will be taking up the lions share of it but I do think it would be rather fun to continue painting something a bit different to keep me entertained and stop me burning out!

Another quick peruse through the last couple of years of posts also reveals that another, potentially equally entertaining mini project has been overlooked in the form of my Orks!

While the possibility of painting up a huge collection of the greenskinned menaces is frankly not on the cards, I do wonder if I can find the time to paint up enough to represent a couple of warbands to play some Gorkamorka type game but with proper clans of Goffs, Badmoons, Snakebites, Deathskullz, Evil Sunz, Renegades and Gretchen too!

Needless to say much of what I hope to do will fall by the wayside as the perils of Real Life intrude but I do hope to give it a go!

All the best!