The Citadel Painting Range circa 1989

With the recent release of some repackaged paint sets from GW, with a rather familiar demon on the cover, and a series of postings on the Oldhammer Community Facebook page I thought I'd share these as Old School paint is rather en vogue at the moment. What we have here is one of those '80s adverts that White Dwarf ran that covered all of the major ranges that GW put out. Warhammer got one, so did Warhammer 40,000 as did WFRP and Bloodbowl. 

Over two pages you can see the five major sets and the associated paints in each. Additionally, the information box above gives quite a lot of detail about what each colour was recommended to do. This is really rather useful for those of you trying to capture the 'Old School Look' of the Citadel painters in the late '80s. 

Gotta love that photograph of Mick McVey too! 

Orlygg

Acceptable in the '80s: Marauder Orcs and Dwarfs

White Dwarf 116 had little Warhammer Fantasy content. As I have said in previous posts, the game was finished with and a new success was looming on the horizon, Warhammer 40,000. For the next couple of years, articles that expanded on the skirmish system published in Rogue Trader in 1987 were expanded and developed to turn the game into a fully fledged battle system. Additionally, we are now in the era of the BIG BOX GAME, and so a great many pages of White Dwarf were spent detailing these releases, most notably the first edition of Space Marine. 

Still, there are gems hidden here and there. Such as the subject of today's post, the Marauder Orcs. I have shared by opinions on the Goblinoids before, and you will be aware that only Kev Adams can truly bring these creatures to life in miniature form. But I must admit, the Morrisons did a really good job with theirs!

The sculpts ooze the cruel malice of the orc race very well but still retain the comic touches of earlier releases. I am particularly fond of the different interpretation of the armour. The Morrisons give us a rather Mongol themed look that is distinctly different from the Citadel range. On the downside, these models are large. This was the beginning of the increase in size of models that the later '80s saw and the the design change from realistic clothing and weaponry to oversized 'comic book' equipment that still presides to this day. Still, this is still a characterful range with plenty going for it. Does it have any fans out there?

Also released in WD116 were some Marauder dwarfs. Sadly, there are no painted examples here and the range is shown purely through old fashioned line drawings. I don't really know a great deal about the MM10 dwarfs, as my knowledge is primarily of the renaissance style dwarfs that came a few months later. Any readers out there care to review these? If you have a large number of these models it would be interesting to hear you opinions on them or even see some photographs.

Cheers, 

Orlygg.

Charge! A Warhammer Fantasy Battle Third Edition Era Skirmish Game?

One question that I get asked a lot is 'does WFB3 have any skirmish rules?' And the answer is always the same, 'no'. I would usually go on to say that the game was written in the age of the DIY gamer, who just changed the rules to suit their particular situation as and when. Sadly, this attitude is no longer present in many people who approach miniature wargaming in all its forms. Too often do I read the words of individuals who complain about rules not being balanced or fair, yet they remain hopelessly obsessed with keeping up with the Jones'.

"Oh, this version of 40K totally nerfs my list!" 

Play the other version then!

"Oh, but my gaming group only uses the latest version of the ruleset. And we only use the latest versions of the models, too!"

Find some new mates then! 

Over here in the Oldhammer Community we have no such problems. The rulesets we use are old, old and old. Still, I do sometimes yearn for a simple version of the game that could be used to play tiny narrative scenario using only a few figures. Then, flicking through issue 115 of White Dwarf I made a discovery. One of those 'hiding in plain sight' jobs. 

I am referring to the game 'Charge!', written by the bods in the Design Studio circa 1988 for use with the Combat Cards range. Reading through the rules, you can see that Warhammer and WFRP are clear influences. As are the streamlined rules used in the Fighting Fantasy books. Now I know my readership, you will not want a longwinded analysis of this ruleset, but would much rather just read the article in your own time. 

So here it is. 

Charge 0001 by orlygg

As you will now now if you have a flick through Charge!, the system is very simple. Yet character creation, magic, victory points, scenery creation and special rules and what not are also covered. All in 5 pages or so. It was rather satisfying to finally find out what all of the funny symbols that appeared on the front of the combat cards were actually for. 

Long time readers may well remember my article on 'Attack!', an even easier set of rules for using the Combat Cards with, though dependent on a chessboard for a playing surface. However, this article also had a series of special rules that may well be appropriate to using Charge! as a skirmish game. 

having read through these rules are a fairly confident that they could be used with little adaption to run a good sized skirmish game. With some clever photoshopping it would also be possible to photograph my miniatures and create my own 'Combat Cards' with their own stats. This would provide a really easy entry point for all of those people interested in Old School gaming but put off by perceived issues not being familiar enough with the rules. 

What do you lot think? Is there scope for a skirmish game in the spirit of old school Warhammer here?

Please share your opinion. 

Orlygg. 

A Warhammer Bestiary: Chaos Cultist

The holidays are upon me once more. Lots of family time, including a trip to the beach, has been spent I have left this blog alone for a while. I often find that this is a good thing, as endless updates of every tiny Oldhammer related thing I do would be tedious, would it not? 

So to kick things off once more, let's revisit Brugal Vassel in a little more detail shall we? Those of you who have read the battle report concerning the Daemon-Prince and Woodcutter will no doubt be familiar with this miniature, as he played a leading role in that scenario. 

As many of you will know, I am working on painting fabric at the moment. I enjoy setting myself little targets and working on them through the models I select for this series. In years past, I must admit to often choosing miniatures that were well within my comfort zone (plastic Space Marines) but I grew dissatisfied that the models I was producing were not of the standard I was after. I felt that they lacked 'a style'. Now, I am forced to select models based on the Bestiary and in many cases come across things that I would have never previously thought about painting. 

For the Chaos Cultists mention in the Bestiary I chose the first model that does not have its origins in the Warhammer range. This miniature was part of the Cthulhu collection put out by Citadel in the mid '80s. Later, it was included as part of the Shadows Over Bogenhafen range as an example of one of the cultists. In that regard, I chose to paint it up as it would cover both bases - a suitable cultist model and an opportunity to paint fabric. 

As I have written before, I have always found fabric a difficult subject to get looking right on a model. So, I had a quite glance through my WD archive and read a bit of what has been published online. Piecing together all this information, I managed to concoct my own method which seems to produce good results. What struck me was how simple the technique was in the end. Basecoat over white, in this case Imperial Purple, and shade with the base coat mixed with black, probably 40:60 black/purple. I watered this mix down and carefully applied it where I though the folds were at their deepest before tidying things up with the basecoat once more. Once dry, it was very simple to add a little Bleached Bone to the basecolour and highlight the edges of the folds. I kept the paint here very fluid, almost like milk, as I find it so much easier to apply in this state. I added a little white to this highlight mix and added an extra hint here and there too. Everything else was finished off using my usual method. 

The job was done in about one hour.

What do you think?

Orlygg

A Warhammer Bestiary: Were

Here's my latest painted figure. A Night Horrors werewolf. Now, I am sure that many of you are familiar with the Night Horrors range as it is really rather collectible, not to mention home to one or two rather pricey models. I have heard it said from others that this particular range is rather difficult to complete but I couldn't say for sure if this were true as I have never had any real problems getting hold of any of the models in the collection. 

Werewolves are rather rare in the Citadel Miniatures world. I cannot actually think of many suitable models for representing them. In fact, I more modern times they have been removed altogether from the background, of at least it was so when I was still reading the fluff. With the speed and reversals of background change in the last ten years they may well have an entire army book out by now! 

Unusually for a living creature, the werewolf has become linked to undead armies. I have always found this rather strange as, despite the bestial urges, weres are ultimately alive. During the 1980s, the alignment of weres in Warhammer was rather ambiguous. The Bestiary remarks that they are neutral beings, and just as likely to be kind as they are callous. The choice of their behavior is up to the GM or players, though of course the more beast the were becomes the more likely he is to devolve into a giant wolf, with all the animalistic urges such a creature must act upon. 

I like the way the rules suggest you use the were. Transformations to wolf man need to be forced by the characters will and a 6 needs to be rolled in order for the change to take place. Being in close proximity to violence may well change this to a 5+, while hand to hand combat will allow a player to use a 4+ to ensure change into a wolf man. The rules are really rather interesting and I really do recommend having a read of them if you have a copy of WFB3 to hand. 

Of course, then there is the threat of transforming into the unpredictable giant wolf. A creature likely to attack friend and foe!

All in all, the weres are a rather complex unit which have a strong bond with the Norse, though are not found exclusively there. The background suggests that many woodcutters and forest men are secretly weres, living peacefully in the forests of the Empire and ensuring that their changes harm nothing but the wild animals of the woods. 

This was a fairly simple paint job really. Ink washes and drybrushing were the orders of the day when it came to completing the wolf fur. I found this took quite a bit of work to get the right tone but achieved it by switching from adding white for the highlight to adding Bleached Bone. The trousers were done using my normal method, as were the torn apart shoes. The eyes were dotted yellow and the lips were painted. I have found that when doing mouths that mixing in the skin tone with red or purple produces a better result that just using paint straight from the pot. 

Try it.

Onwards to more humans now. A trilogy infact! Chaos cultist, warrior and sorcerer. I better get painting!

Orlygg

The Daemon Prince and the Woodcutter Scenario Report: Part 3

The melee continues in front of the cottage's weather beaten beams. Having stopped the Nurgle charge, the Slaaneshi forces begin to fight back, felling a pale skinned thug and pushing his companions back. Behind them, the struggle between the two champions remains a deadlock. 

As the flail wielding warriors meet and clash the surviving goblins begin to move across the clearing to regroup by the road. Their wolves can smell the fresh blood that has been split to north and snapped eagerly at their bits. Their new leader, Grombottle, is puzzled to see a strange statue in the place of what he was sure was a tree before their charge. Only, the statue seems to be crumbling... And from within, a devilish red light can be seen...

With a bone crunching crack, the statue implodes to reveal the twisted form of a Bloodletter! The daemon of Khorne springs forth inspiring terror in all who witnesses its daemonic birth. Spotting followers of the hated Slaanesh, the daemon becomes frenzied and attacks the closest fighter.

Fear is a powerful force. Despite their familiarity with the creatures of chaos, followers from both sides flee in terror of the daemon. Their panic spreads to the goblins, who save for a single soul rooted to the spot, run for the safety of the woods. Voight's nerve fails him and he too retreats back into the woodland. The few chaos followers who master their fears turn to face the daemon, eager to fell the creature and attract the attention of their dark patrons. Nurgle or Slaanesh, they fight together.

Meanwhile, a panicked beastman of Slaanesh scrambles over the woodcutter's wall. A terrifying change overcomes the human. Hair sprouts through his skin, his face twists into that of the beast! Jon is none other than a werewolf. Enraged by the invasion of his garden, the were lashes out at the beastman but fails to connect with him as he flees. The beastman scales the second wall and is away.

With the panic over, the motral fighters of both sides engage with the daemon. The bloodletter lashes out with his teeth and hellblade but fails to even land a blow on the mortal with the green helmet. The thug, Felix, parries frantically with his weapons and defends himself with almost inhuman bravery. Slowly, his fellow mortals begin to surround the daemon but Felix has been noticed by his god.

Feeling the eye of Slaanesh focus on an underling, leaving her actions unacknowledged, Blandidir strikes out with her magical blade. It finds its mark! The daemon's daemonical protection cannot withstand the blow and the entity retracts back into the warp as quickly as it came. 

Leaving in its place the cursed statue. Brugal Vassel realises that the daemon is bound within the statue once more.

"This is no shrine to Our Prince," he declares, "but an abhorrent entrapment of Khorne! This is a place of worship of our enemy not our Lord! 

Rage boils inside Brugal at the trickery. Somewhere there is a traitor to their coven. Someone keen to see them unwittingly do the Blood God's work. His anger boils up into a flaming fireball spell. Brugal unleashes it at the Bilestaff, the Nurgle sorcerer and strikes the cancerous magician down. 

As the powerful mage collapses, the remaining Nurgle forces loose heart and flee. One is cut down while the other narrowly escapes a second fireball attack form Brugal.

At the end of the skirmish, Blandidir controls the clearing with most of her warband. There is little left to do but contemplate their betrayal and to seek answers elsewhere. Slaanesh, pleased with what he has seen this day rewards the coven well. Felix, for his bravery fighting against the daemon and not suffering a scratch despite its frenzied attacks, discovers a set of giant fangs begin to protrude from his jaws. Perhaps in recognition, or indeed mockery, of his engagement with the daemon. Blandidir feels her god's attentions flow through her body with delightful spasms and pains. Her strength is much increased, despite her outward appearance. This gift will not doubt be enough to ensure no stalemate next time she meets the Nurgle champion, Voight in open conflict. 

The Daemon Prince and the Woodcutter Scenario Report: Part 2

As the sun begins its slow decline into west, the chaos warband spreads itself out across the road. Their bright and garish colouring catches the light while the metallic amulets that adorn many of the folds and creases reflect the sun's rays around them in wild, dancing shades. The leader of the group, now exposed as a female dark elf, emerges from the canopy cover flanked by a hulking chaos warrior. 

"Brandidir!" A voice howls from east. "Brandidir! Beware the gigantic spider that lurks to the south east! Its crawled from its hole and is just sitting there!"

The dark elf glances across the clearing at the sound of her name. She spots a peasant man fleeing in earnest towards her. As his feet eat up the furlong between them, she watches as he prizes a simple silver band from his finger. Instantly, his simple clothing vanishes and in its stead appears the hulking form of an armoured warrior!

Illusion then! But why?

"The shrine? Have you found it?" Blandidir calls out eagerly, her eyes flashing with impatience. 

"Not yet, just that damn spider! Its enormous!"

As the hurried exchange is made across the clearing, the goblins gather their strength and charge across the open ground, levelling their weapons and collide with the spider and a crack of impacting bodies. The wolves snarl and snap viciously as the goblins mill around thumping the arachnid's bodies with their weapons. Grubshat recoils and then counter attacks, her slicing mandibles striking out for goblin skin and wolf throat. 

The remaining goblins spread out and block the road between the bricks of the woodcutter's garden and the old fence of the hedgerow. Their wicked eyes glean nastily towards the cottage and its occupant and wearily towards the advancing chaos worshipers. 

The warriors of the chaos group advance at a pace and form a rough line across their side of the road. The woodcutter, his eyes blazing, grips his axe haft with his rough fingers and watches, poised for action. 

"What are you goblins doing here?" Are the words of the pink haired clubman. 

"Wee iz 'ere ta doo in dat bugga, Grubshat! An' yoo pinky sodz iz not crossin' dat dere fresh'old or wez will fillz ya full of arras. Itz da boss' scrap an' nuffin ta doo wiv yoo!" Comes the gutteral response. 

Meanwhile, the newly revealed warrior in armour completes his mad dash across the clearing towards his leader. Only seconds from his group, he stops stock still alongside the tree that grows close to the hedgerow. What was that he could feel? A tickling, pulling sensation. A fine feeling and one he has experienced before when standing close to the magical items that his coven maintain in Drakberz. 

"Brandidir! Here! I think I have found the shrine!"

The dark elf passes a sign to the cowled follower in purple and the acolyte produces a preserved heart from a secret place within his robe. Advancing with the organ held high above his head, he slices open the ventricles and allows the cold blood to splatter across the bark of the tree. 

For the second time in minutes, an illusion flickers out and vanishes. In its place stands an ancient statue of a chaos warrior. Its stone grey green with age and cracked with the passing of the centuries. A strange tremor can be felt beneath the ground and the tickling and pulling sensation spreads out across the clearing and beyond. Almost like some kind of magical force was spreading out across the land itself. 

Despite the breaking of the illusion, the stand off by the road remains tense. To the east, the wolfriders continue to battle with the spider. Now wounded, the creature fights on as brown ichor oozes from its severed leg. Sensing victory, the wolves and their riders surge forwards once more. In the melee, their leader, Ripnose Snotz, goes down beneath a savage strike from the spider's hairy leg. Undaunted by the loss of their leader, the remaining goblinoids continue to hack into the meat of the arachnid. 

Unnoticed by any of the fighters in the clearing, the canopy to the north is again vibrant with movement. Only, instead of the bright colours of the chaos warband the hues on show are darker, mud splattered a filthy. The cloud of flies returns, thicker this time, intrigued no doubt by the commotion. They buzz and dance in excitement in ever darkening clouds. 

A new leader steps forth onto the soil of the clearing. Chaos armour hangs from his powerfully formed body in rusted plates. Bodily fluids run in glistening rivers from between the cracks of the armour and like the dark elf before him, he has the words of a letter in his mind.

"Voight, 

We have been informed that a group of rival cultists have emerged from the fields around Drakberz and are making their way along the Old Forest Road. Our informant has reported this group to be followers of the Purple Palm, a Slaaneshi group active in the town.  I understand that they are well equipped with magical items that will be useful to our cause. 

Your instructions are clear. Locate this group, ambush them along the road and kill them. Their equipment must be looted and returned to me here, as the Deathfist will soon begin to push at our boarders once more. Spare the life of the acolyte Brugal Vassel though, he doesn't yet know it, but he is the informant feeding us with the knowledge we so desperately need. Father Nurgle has blessed him with a most fortunate illness and as the pustules burst, so the pus speaks to His servants of the perverse plans of the Purple Palm. 

Leave no other witnesses. 

Molke"

The buzz of flies does not go unnoticed for long. Blandidir spins on her heel and notices the threat almost as soon at it appears in the clearing. Snapping a command, most of her warband forms a line of battle alongside the shrine. A beastman and thug remain between the group and the three goblins. 

They have been ambushed! 

To the south east, Grubshat finally falls to the goblin's attacks. Her body recoils for the last time and curls up into a broken ball. Howling their delight, the surviving wolfriders begin to ride around in a circle singing foul goblin songs. 

"I challenge thee, Slaaneshi fool!" The rusted champion calls out, pointing his sword towards the enraged figure of Blandidir. "Single combat in the eyes of the gods!"

Unable to refuse such a request, Blandidir strides forwards with her blade in her hand. Encouraging voices and foul jeers are uttered by their followers as they make their first moves towards each other. Soon, the fight is in earnest, but due to battle prowess and magical aid the two champions seem locked in a bitter stalemate. 

The acolyte, Brugal Vassel, starts a whisper amongst his fellows. The stalemate is obvious and only a change in circumstance will assure victory. A few moments more and they charge the enemy in support of their leader. 

As the dark elf's latest blow is deflected by Voight's blade, the Nurgle warband, perhaps guessing their foes plans, take the initiative and surge forwards. The faster moving troops run and clash together in a fury of blades, while the two slower flail wielding warriors stalk towards each other. A fire ball spell lauches itself from Brugal's hand, wounding the Nurgle sorcerer before he is able to act...

As the first drops of blood fall to the soil and its sour tang fills the air the cracks on the shrine begin to deepen. Small grains of stone begin to fall away...

The woodcutter, watching the struggle, hefts his axe once again as his eyes slowly turn yellow.

END OF PART TWO. PART THREE CAN BE FOUND HERE.