Thrust and Parry - the Sword Master

After finishing off my arrogant lordlings from the other week, I was left with a third figure from the Vespero's Vendetta set. I didn't want three long-haired duellists, so I picked up a few bits to see what else I could do with him.

Happily I'd been gifted some 3D printed shields (thanks Mike!) from someone else's somewhat more extensive Citadel Guard project. It was a simple job to grab another head and add the shield to give me a much less flamboyant (and possibly more effective) swordsman!

Arrogant Lordlings - Citadel Guard Duellists

Part of the fun I've been having with my Mordheim / Frostgrave warband is selecting models for a particular role. Whilst it would be easy to have a rag-tag group of models with no visual coherence, I'm trying to add to the warband with models that fit visually and thematically. Cloaks are one of the dominant features on the Lone Wolf Citadel Guard, so I'm trying where possible, to ensure that my models are wearing cloaks. As a secondary criterion, I'm aiming to primarily use sculpts by one of the Perry twins.

In Mordheim, shields are a sub-standard option. Ideally you want your swordsmen to be armed with a sword and dagger as a minimum (or sword/axe or sword/mace). In Frostgrave, the Treasure Hunter soldier is equipped with a sword and dagger. There aren't that many cloak-wearing two hand weapon wielding Perry sculpts around, but I recalled the mid-1990s regiment of renown Vespero's Vendetta. A couple of those guys would be perfect!

A Bolt in the Chest - Citadel Guard Crossbowmen

 After all the combat-oriented troopers I've painted up for my Lone Wolf Citadel Guard patrol (for Mordheim, Frostgrave and now possibly Warcry gaming), it was about time I added to the single missile trooper.

The second crossbowman is actually the model that set the look for these troops - the bandit from the Lone Wolf range. The third crossbowman is another Citadel feudal / Bretonnian figure. All three share a lot of visual similarities - take a look at their padded jerkins, helmets and leggings.

Adding Just a Pinch of Magic - Frostgrave Wizards

Hanging on the coat tails of any Mordheim warband is a Frostgrave one - all you need is a pair of wizards. If you've not looked at Frostgrave before, it's a very nice, neat fantasy skirmish game published by Osprey, centred on a wizard, their apprentice and accompanying band of mercenary soldiers. It's miniature manufacturer agnostic, so if you want to pit venerable Citadel metals against Reaper Bones figures, you certainly can!

The best bit about it is, as I mentioned above, all you need to adapt a Mordheim warband into a Frostgrave one, is to paint up some wizards that match the theme. Having just completed a small group of Lone Wolf Citadel Guard for use in Mordheim (prompted by the Scale Creep Mordheim Five-a-side Challenge), it seemed sensible to follow that up by painting a magical duo for the Frostgrave Wizard Battle Challenge.

Recruiting for the Citadel Guard - More Mordheim Additions

In my first post about my Lone Wolf Citadel Guard Mordheim / Frostgrave / generic fantasy skirmish project, I covered the first five models of the warband. I was hoping to round the warband out to a solid ten-strong, but have instead just completed another three models. Don't worry though, I have plans for at least another eleven models, including wizards, rangers, swordsmen, something smaller and something bigger!

This time round I've painted up a further trio of Guardsmen - a second champion, another halberdier and a swordsman:

The Citadel Guard - A New Mordheim Expedition

I'm not entirely sure when it was that I started getting interested in Citadel Lone Wolf range. I'm not by inclination a fan of pre-slotta miniatures, or a long-time devotee of the Lone Wolf books. But at some point, I looked at Citadel's 1984 Lone Wolf miniatures, and thought they looked cool.

Image from Stuff of Legends.

As these things go, I acquired a couple of the Citadel Guard. Then, perhaps a few months later, a Guard Captain. At some point last year I picked up the Bandit. And then I started formulating the idea of a little warband of the Citadel Guard. I could do a few head swaps perhaps. I could add the Bandit with some other crossbowmen. I could commission John Pickford to sculpt me some heads and shields.