Turning lead into bold...

Back in the saddle. Real Life has finished punching me in the nuts and I appear to have paid whatever dues were required.

Good news - I've managed to paint a figure in this crazy November! Bad news, is that its not going to be posted tonight because I thought of something I need to do to it quickly and the OCD perfectionist in me decided that I could wait. And by 'I', I mean you.

So I thought I'd draw your attention to this instead:

...and this...

I'd have thought the chap would have thrown the postage in for free. You know - because £419 is a shit-ton of money for 3 grams of lead. Maybe it can cure cancer if you eat it. A bold price in this time of austerity and strife. If only the greeks had a few, their economy would be now stable.

I thought Terror of the Lichemaster was going to be an expensive exercise. Thank heavens I didn't pick Orc's Drift.

A Complete History of Grom, part 4

November.

Seems to be a busier month than most. What with people saving the planet with facial hair, and succumbing to their inner muse, it's a wonder that anyone gets anything done at all.

I'm not participating in either of these fine events, but November still caught up with me.

And when it did, it brought my old friend and yours, Real Life, with it. Real Life chastised me. He seemed concerned that I wasn't phoning or writing anymore. That I didn't want to hang out anymore. So he punched me in the nuts and told me to get my shit in order. He made me do work, and have to travel, and so forth. And he helped the cat get a bladder infection too. 'Cos he's a dick. Real Life, that is, not the cat.

Anyway, despite his best efforts, I've managed to finish painting a figure:

It's the very first Grom. That is, the pre-slotta one. This, then, brings to conclusion my complete history of Grom. Here's another shot, with all the Groms following in chronological order:

Grom the First (1st/2nd Ed)

Grom the Second (3rd Ed)

Grom the Third (4th Ed and current release)

Grom the Fourth (Custom)

Of course, if you're new to this thread, you'll note that Grom the Third comes with Grom the Fourth's chariot. I ended up making an even bigger Grom than Grom the Third, because...er...uh, well, you know. Just because.

Here's the boys together:

If you want to see more of the chariot, there's more in this thread.

Anyway, Real Life isn't finished with me yet and appears to want me to be his bitch for the rest of November. I'd expect this to be my only post this month. If you're lucky, I might scrape a Chaos post together for late November. Lotta bitching to do about Chaos.

Stupid Real Life.

Terror of the Lichemaster - 8 / 17 Figures. And the book.

When I added the Terror of the Lichemaster appeal, I had five of the scenario figures. My thoughts were that if I had two of the 'hard to get' ones, I'd be in there with a chance. Fortunately, I now have three of the hard to get ones, and a few others. Also, I finally own the actual boxed set and scenario book. I didn't get the buildings, unfortunately, but we can work around that.

Also, given that the Lichemaster scenario was originally written for Warhammer 2nd edition, I had to get the rules as well. The scenario is compatible with Warhammer 3rd edition, but - old times sake and all that:

Now it must be said that this site was not originally started with Warhammer 2nd edition in mind. When this got underway, I had 3rd edition firmly in my sights, and the objective was to spread the word. But, having looked at 2nd edition, I'm happy to bring it in scope as well. Compared to its modern day equivalent, it is still significantly more advanced in terms of player maturity, requiring adults to play, and co-operate, and not get bogged down in arguments about rules. Although it was before my time, I welcome it and look forward to employing it when I've finished all the Lichemaster work (so - in 2018 sometime).

Also included in the box was the order sheet for the figures. Released from the poor copy up at The Stuff of Legends, I am now able to clearly see what some of these figures actually look like, so I have a better idea of what to look for on eBay.

And I got a little badge. I like badges.

Anyway, this is my collection of stuff on the actual order sheet:

Before

After

Of course, other figures have come up on eBay, including the Ace of Spades himself, Mr Kemmler:

Sadly, I didn't have £93.65 (the current going rate for one? Statistics suggest that if you bid more than £93.65, you can bag yourself a Kemmler too...) to spend on the chap. Still, having got hold of Gimbrin Finehelm has added to my credibility as a Terror of the Lichemaster collector. Now, the only two figures I've not seen anywhere on the whole internet (for buying/trading) to date, are Hunk and Ranlac.

Anyway, I've got detailed pictures of each figure over on my appeal page, so that if you are collecting these figures, then you will have a clear idea of what the hell to look for. Working our the Fritzy was an AD&D Blink Dog took absolute ages...

The Oldhammer Contract

I just came across Mr Zhu's manifesto.

Let's be clear: it is a manifesto. It is the statement of intent of the Warhammer OSR and quite frankly, the succinct and concise expression of almost everything Warhammer for Adults was created to bring about for a single disgruntled gamer, except...clearer than my own wittering inability to express myself.

So, there's a contract, an image and a distant reference to the other leading OSR statement, noted over at Tales of the Maelstrom, referenced on this site here, and alluded to by another leading voice in our desperate return to the 80's.

We have a manifesto. We have a figurehead. And now we have a banner:

Gentlemen. I suggest we have a rebellion on our hands.

And so, like the waves of revolution that have flooded across the middle east, I invite you to participate in this very spontaneous, but very real opposition to this sort of thing. Not because I don't want you to play at tournaments (although your life will be better for it), but when someone else gets to tell you what army you're going to play...

All I'm saying is you don't have to do this. You can be in control of your gaming experience.

So. Sign Zhu's manifesto (well, leave a comment, at any rate). Change your life.

Marauding Chaos Knights and the Citadel of Confusion

Of all the figures I ever fantasised about owning, the Chaos Knights of the 80's were almost the highest on the list. Before this blog, I had never owned a chaos army, mainly because after 4th edition, it was never the same army.

Back to the knights: they looked thoroughly mean, without being the sinister, spiky dorks of the modern Games Workshop. And, in a world where 25mm meant 25mm - they were big. I dare say they would be almost the same size as a modern knight, but I don't know, because I don't have any.

So,  few months ago, when I saw some knights titled Marauder Chaos Knights on ebay, I thought, "Silly fool - Marauders are the more modern name of the light cavalry available to modern chaos armies. Those aren't Marauders, mate - those are Chaos Knights!"

Thoroughly self satisfied, I bought them.

No doubt you can see the trap I'd fallen into. Marauder was the name of a miniatures company, owned by Games Workshop. Everyone has heard of Marauder Dwarves. Even me. I can't tell you why I hadn't put those two facts together.

Anyway, the point is, I ended up with four Marauder Chaos Steeds (with Citadel riders, no less!)

The scale problem was immediately evident. I have no idea how the Marauder Chaos Knights (the riders) actually look on the steeds - but the citadel ones positively dwarfed the little buggers.

This is a comparison between the Marauder and Citadel steeds:

Marauder vs. Citadel Chaos Steeds

Top left and bottom right are the Marauder ones. The difference is astounding. I now know that this was mainly due to the cost of metal back in the day. The Marauder ones were obviously cheaper to produce.

But I don't care. What the hell am I supposed to do with four Chaos Shetland Ponies? So, for months, they've sat forgotten in an (eventually) outbound eBay queue.

That takes me to yesterday. Having now reached a stage gate with the Undead, I realised that I was a bit bored of painting undead.

I need to paint something else. I would love to paint my Orcs & Goblins, but that means that I won't really be able to capitalise on the painting I've already done.

But a Chaos army gets me around that. If I paint up some Chaos stuff, I can get a huge army for a small amount of painting effort, and because it's Chaos, I can do some very interesting painting if I want. And the Undead can ally with them (or even be summoned by them, I suppose).

So, following that track, I ended up looking at my figures and producing a 500,000* point Chaos army. In that list, I realised that I could use the diminutive Marauder ponies to make a unit of Thug Horse.

As far as I know, there are no models for this unit, and, given that they are (in my mind) supposed to be smaller than the Chaos Warriors that are further along the path of chaos than they are, this seemed very fitting.

Which now puts me in the place where I either need to find another Marauder Chaos Steed, or I need to find another older Citadel horse of a similar scale, to create the minimum of five that I need. And, given that, due to recent events, I suppose I'll be chasing down a Realm of Chaos Slaanesh army, I'll actually need to get two, because you need six in a Slaanesh army.

Such is the way of chaos. The despised become the loved.

So, I don't suppose you have any Thug horses Marauding as Knights, do you?

*Slight exaggeration. But it's 3rd Ed. Chaos, so you get the idea. 

Milestone(s) Reached! Terror of the Lichemaster & minimum requirements for an Undead army

As the title says, a massive milestone has been reached. Of course, there are other blogs where people say they'll paint stuff, then just go ahead and produce a whole army.

Milestones don't mean anything to those people. The end is not a milestone.

Fortunately, dear readers, here things are a bit more sedentary. Like me, I'm sure you couldn't possibly cope with the delivery of a completely painted 80's army all in one go. Something would burst.

Anyway, the milestone. In the Warhammer Armies book for 3rd edition, an Undead army requires three things:

A Necromancer.

At least 20 Skeleton Warriors:

At least 10 Grim Reapers:

Here, then, is the milestone - 31 painted figures, covering exactly the stated requirements:

The Grim Reapers:

The other milestone here, is some progress for the Terror of the Lichemaster. If you look closely, you will see the leader of the Grim Reapers (no - not the one with the horns - the chap with the glowing sword) is none other than Krell. 

The Warriors:

The Warriors are comprised mainly of the Nightmare Legion, featuring Ennio and some of the boys. I say some, because perfectionists would say there are 24 members of the Nightmare Legion and they should all look similar to each other. I don't actually have all 24 members, and I get bored from too much repetition, so there are only 12 of them.

Don't be fooled by my clever photography - there is only one necromancer, he's just in both pictures.

So, the milestones reached are:

1. Minimum requirements for an Undead army
2. Krell and 29 other skeletons for the Terror of the Lichemaster
3. Enough of the Nightmare Legion to call the unit the Nightmare Legion

Its nice to finally see some paint on these chaps. Onwards!

Regards
Gaj

Realm of Chaos: Ellen Degenerate

Ellen Degenerate. One pun becomes another.

If, at this point, you don't know what the hell I'm talking about, it might be worth reading the events in the epilogue to the Battle for the Wyemm Seeyay. Go there now. Then the rest of this might make sense.

One of the most interesting events of the Battle for the Wyemm Seeyay, was the incredible incompetence Ellendee had with her magic. Basically, the poor girl failed her intelligence test three times in a row. In fact, she only managed to cast one spell once. That wasn't a planned event - quite simply, the dice rolls were just awful.

When I started looking at what I could do with that story wise, it just became more and more obvious that the sort of person that would turn to chaos would most likely be the sort of pampered, arrogant elf who thought they would save the day with their clever spells and basically only survive long enough to see their entire army annihilated before being taken captive themselves.

So the choice was easy, really.

And, given that Ellendee is somewhat infamous, I felt that I could roll up her Realm of Chaos conversions, because we have a dice log to prove the rolls, and a global audience to see her descend into madness...

What we have here, then, is the before and after case. Ellendee Generis, the level 10 elf, and Ellen Degenerate, the impossible-to-apply-a-level-to chaos champion:

	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Int	Cl	WP	Magic Points	Fear Points
Ellendee Generis	5	5	4	4	3	2	7	1	9+1	10+2	10+1	10+2	10	0
Ellen Degenerate	5	6	6	6	4	5	10	4	10+2	10+2	10+1	10+2	20	4

As you can see, she suddenly became a lot more... competent. All I'm saying is that wayward gyrocopter pilots had better watch their step from now on.

Anyway, Ellendee's rise (descent?) was actually really quick. I only created her as a starting champion - I used the profile of a Level 10 Dark Elf Wizard and produced one Chaos Attribute for her, after applying the (meaningless) Chaos Gift of Slaanesh.

Let's go in order, shall we:

Reward 1 - default Gift of Slaanesh

+1 to Cl. Her Cl is already 10+1, so no more benefit to be achieved, I don't think. Perhaps Cl 10+2?

Reward 2 - Attribute 1: Chaos Lord. 

Yeah, that's right. Chaos Lord. Check this out:

So, I rolled well. She went from a frail little elven damsel to a heaving beast of chaos. Unfortunately, I then rolled for a further five Attributes. This means that she has six attributes, so if she ever rolls an 'Eye of the Gods' Reward when she gets her next reward, she's going to turn into a Chaos Spawn. She'll never make it to immortality now. Let's see how far we can go, though.

Reward 2 - Attribute 2: Long Neck

Great. Now she can see over fences. That's a problem she has all the time...

Reward 2 - Attribute 3: Bestial Face

That's the stuff! Chaos coming out in all it's glory. Is it a lion? Or a bear?

No. It's a goat. Beware, enemies of chaos, lest she ram* you to death!

Reward 2 - Attribute 4: Zoological Mutation

Fortunately, Chaos asserts it's true qualities, as we see the opportunity for a truly frightening and powerful mutation come through!

So I roll the dice...and her mouth is affected! That great, evil maw that... goats have. Maybe lion now?

Nah. She gets the mouth of a Rabbit. Grrr! Or whatever sounds rabbits make.

Reward 2 - Attribute 5: Limb Transferance

Okay, so up until now, she was still pretty badass. Even with a rabbit's mouth. You can get a helmet to cover that up. But now she was running the risk of quite an embarrassing deformity. More embarrassing than the long neck, even.

So wouldn't you know it, her bizarre rabbit's mouth moves around to her...

Back.

Which is always useful. Now she has to lie on the floor staring at the sky in order to eat. She can't even use her long neck to shout abuse at her neighbours over the fence anymore. Still - could have been worse. I decided, for longer term narrative, to have the mouth at the base of her neck, which makes it a bit more sinister and possibly a little more practical as well.

Reward 2 - Attribute 6: Plague Bearer

Don't get excited, it's not what I thought it was either. She is sick, though:

She's not a follower of Nurgle, so let's see what she gets:

The Shakes! So, the first really negative attribute - she loses some weapon skill and an attack. She can live with that.

But that's not all, folks. Being a Chaos Lord, she got two extra rolls on the Chaos Followers table, meaning she could already start with a small army to do her bidding. All together, this gave me three rolls. Having rolled all my dice, I got...

...a Chaos Goblin. One.

I guess she couldn't shout very loud what with her mouth on her back and all. They wanted to come, they just couldn't hear her.

I'm sure you'll be pleased to know that he's a very nice goblin, though.

Still, Ellen got three other nice things, being a Chaos Lord and all...

1. Chaos Armour (Yes!)
2. Daemon Weapon (Yes!!)
3. Extra Magic Level (Yes!!!)

The armour is pretty straight forward - she gets heavy armour and can still cast spells.

The weapon contains a Daemonette. So it doesn't have amazingly scary properties, although it doesn't allow armour saves and will kill anything with just one wound. Also, she gets +3 to hit. Like I said, not amazingly scary.

It has 37 strength points. Basically, each time the blade kills something, it absorbs a third of the victim's strength as strength points. Once it reaches 37, it is sated and doesn't have any further effect until the next battle.

And finally, the dear girl learned some new spells. When you become a Realms of Chaos Chaos Champion, and you are a wizard, you automatically get the spells of the god the champion follows. In Ellen's case, her spells now look like this (of course, you didn't know what spells she had before, because she never bloody cast any of them besides fireball...):

Level 1:

1. Slaanesh: Acquiescence
2. Battle Magic: Flight
3. Battle Magic: Dispirit
4. Battle Magic: Wind Blast
5. Battle Magic: Fireball
6. Elemental: Hand of Fire

Level 2:

1. Slaanesh: Pavane of Slaanesh
2. Elemental: Wind of Magic
3. Daemonic: Summon Lesser Daemons

So, there we have it. Ladies and gentlemen, I give you Ellen Degenerate, Champion of Slaanesh.

Regards
Gaj

*Actually, I know nothing about goats. For all I know, there are incredibly dangerous feral mountain goats, who carefully stalk their prey and then ram them off difficult mountain passes or something. Their freaky little eyes are quite disturbing, I suppose.