Bill's Leader Month: Burgomeister Livorno Nebelhorn & Entourage

 February is a short month, and for me at least it tends to be punctuated by two events: first, the annual Running GAGG gaming convention, hosted by the Geneseo Area Gaming Group at the State University of New York at Geneseo. I've only missed the convention two or three times since 2005, and it is the social event of the year for me. Second, my wife has a terrible tendency to get horribly ill in February; gallbladder attack one year, horrible infection following wisdom tooth extraction another year, etc. Because of the shortness of the month and planning around these two events, I decided to make February my Leader Month this year and give myself a break from rank and file painting.

Running GAGG has come and gone for this year now (and I used miniatures I'd painted to one of the RPG sessions I ran there), and my wife got hit with a terrible case of food poisoning on Valentine's Day that she's still, as of this writing (February 18) recovering from. So it's a very good thing I budgeted my painting accordingly!

For this month I have my general, wizard, and battle standard bearer.

Burgomeister Livorno Nebelhorn (Level 15 Hero, Light Armor and Shield) is the leader of the town of Vogelburgh, a position he inherited from his father (he is named for his Tilean grandfather on his mother's side). A stout and stern man, he takes his responsibilities as burgomeister seriously, and takes his place on the front lines in battle to defend the town and its people. 

The figure is from Satyr Art Studio's "Oldhammer Personalities" pack, sculpted by Drew Williams (I told you we'd see his name again in my OWAC entries this year). I went with a predominantly black and red scheme for him punctuated by pops of yellow, instead of focusing on yellow and black; once I glued the shield in place I really felt confident that that was the right call, as the yellow of the shield helps balance the black. Decal on the shield is from "Carthage Must Be Destroyed," and was a breeze to apply. I went into this challenge expecting the decals to fight me every step of the way, and so far that has not been the case. Knock on wood.

Master Harlund Sandorsz (Level 10 Wizard), of the school of Amber Wizardry, is the man responsible for Vogelburgh's famed giant chickens. His eccentric husbandry and chicken feed enriched with 11 secret herbs and alchemical reagents has caused prodigious growth without sacrificing flavor. 

Figure is from Old School Miniatures, and they don't have a sculptor listed on the website for this figure but I half suspect he's a Drew Williams sculpt as well; the details of the face and the way the drapery of the robes is sculpted makes me think of Drew's style. I could very well be wrong. Either way, he was a pain to paint; I don't know what it was but the slightest touch caused paint to rub off the folds of the robe. I think a couple times I just looked at the figure wrong and paint just disintegrated. 

Karl Hendl (Level 10 Hero, Army Standard Bearer, Light Armor, Shield) is the promising young man tasked with carrying Vogelburgh's standard into battle and displaying the town's pride. 

This is an F2-series Fighter from Citadel Miniatures, originally armed with an axe; when he arrived from eBay, the axe was badly bent and the metal stressed enough that I simply trimmed it away, drilled out the hand and inserted a 4" steel pin for a banner pole. The banner topper was original from Games Workshop's Dogs of War mercenary regiment, "Lumpin Croop's Fighting Cocks." I had originally intended to make a press mold of the standard top, make green stuff copies and use them across all the units of the army but I just couldn't get the castings to come out nicely. Ultimately I drilled into the standard top and inserted the steel pin into it. 

This banner isn't freehanded the way last month's was; I designed this banner is MSPaint using a clip art scroll and rooster design, printed on regular computer paper and then painted over the flag. The lettering on the scroll is hand written using a Micron Pigma Pen with a .5mm tip. 

Points-wise, these three are:

• Level 15 Hero, Light Armor and Shield - 83 points
• Level 10 Wizard - 85 points
• Level 10 Hero, Army Standard Bearer, Light Armor and Shield - 108 points

For a grand total for this month of 276 points, and 522 points for the Challenge so far. 

 For added fun, can you name all the chicken references I've made in this post?

Bill's Rank & File Month 1: Totleger's Carvers

 "Vogelburgh is a small village, up in the foothills of the mountains, forgettable aside from its monstrous poultry (and largely forgotten by the Empire at large except during tax season). It musters and supports only a single small regiment of state troops - a regiment of Helblitzen, zealously trained and drilled by Captain Totleger. Though they be few in number, their training is comparable to any regiment raised in more cosmopolitan regions of the Empire, and their strength is bolstered by that of the ogre known as 'Big Frug.' Frug is considered something of a mascot to the regiment, dressed in a fine uniform and assigned the all-important task of guarding the regiment's lager ration."

 

Here we are, month one of OWAC VII is in the bag! I'm not going to lie, I struggled a little bit this month; I'm really out of practice painting figures that have been primed white, and I'm definitely still getting the hang of using Contrast paints effectively. A big chunk of the month was spent dreading the possibility that I'd made a horrible mistake - either in choosing this army instead of my comfort Waaagh, or in not priming black and doing 'slap-chop' style painting with the Contrast paints. 

Once I started applying highlights (and in the case of the yellow, painting Vallejo Golden Yellow over the Iyanden Yellow Contrast), I started to feel a lot more positive about what I was doing. As always, it's important to trust the process; I think the end result is pretty good all things considered.

The Halberdiers are Wars of the Roses billmen, originally released by Front Rank Miniatures (and now manufactured and sold under the Front Rank name by Gripping Beast). They're pleasingly solid sculpts, comparable to 5th and 6th edition Empire figures in size and dimensions. Definitely took some work to clean up the mold lines and excess material, so the molds might be ready for a remaster in the near future. 

 

Big Frug is an Imperial Ogre from Knightmare Miniatures, sculpted by Drew Williams. He's a charming sculpt as well, which comes as no surprise given Drew's talent. I've got a rather substantial number of trolls he's sculpted and they're wonderful, and we'll see more figures from his studio in this army before this OWAC is done. The barrel he's standing guard over is part of a set from Dunkeldorf Miniatures, based out of Denmark. A lot of them have skulls, wine bottles or candles atop them, but I definitely think this one, unadorned save the iron cross design, fits better with him. 

Dunkeldorf's figures are ideal for player characters and NPCs in games of Warhammer Fantasy Role-Play, though they are closer to 32mm scale, making them tower over standard 28mm figures. I've got a couple that I've incorporated into this army, but it was a bit of a surprise to realize these figures are head and shoulders taller than almost everyone else in the army. And speaking of Dunkeldorf, their "pets" accessories yielded this charming rooster for my purposes:

So here we've got what we'll call 19 Helblitzen (that rooster's a fighter!) and Captain Totleger, a Level 10 Hero. So points-wise, that looks like:

• 19 Helblitzen, plus standard and musician = 189 pts
• Level 10 Hero with hand weapon and light armor = 57

For a points total this month of 246 points.  

And again, here's my "price of entry/secret santa" figure before it goes out:

Bill's Defenders of Vogelburgh

Here we are again, OWAC VII! I sat out OWAC VI, and went to the Field of Bones the year prior, but I’m back with more orcs and goblins to cont...wait a minute. Wait. These stout little guys lack the ears and noses to be goblins. And these are clean, well-armored human beings, not orcs. What gives here?

 

Yes, I’m taking a break from the Waaaagh to pursue another, smaller project this year. Every year I’m blown away and inspired by Jaeckel’s absolutely brilliant armies, with their strong narrative focus and thoughtful unit selection to support that narrative. And I’m still in awe of Byron’s stunning “Army of Güsseldorf” from OWAC V. Between these influences, I decided I wanted to challenge myself to build an army that tells a story, that has a tight focus, with unit selections that make sense within that story. And I wanted it to be fairly light-hearted and whimsical, an army rich in puns and cheeky winks at the audience.

 Going through my pile of opportunity, I realized I had a goodly amount of Halflings from Old School Miniatures that I had started painting and stopped work on years ago. After a bath in stripper they were as good as new. A 3rd edition Empire army with Halfling allies sounded like it would be a nice change of pace from the orcs and goblins. Looking at what else was on the market that I could bolster these halflings with, an idea for a narrative began to form…

***

Vogelburgh is a small, sleepy community in the Imperial province of Averland, nestled in the foothills of the World’s Edge Mountains, two or three days’ ride north of the fortress-town of Grenzstadt. It is bothered occasionally by wandering bands of orcs (usually survivors of failed invasions through the Black Fire Pass), and more rarely by beastmen, but for the most part is a peaceful place where nothing particularly exciting happens – which is exactly the way the inhabitants prefer it. “We’re a quiet town, for quiet people,” as Burgomeister Livorno Nebelhorn is fond of saying.

The closest thing to a claim to fame held by Vogelburgh is its unusual poultry. Under the eccentric husbandry of Amber Wizard Harlund Sandorsz, Vogelburgh’s chickens grow to prodigious size, with the largest being the size of ponies. Sandorsz’ giant chickens have been investigated three times in the last five years by the Cult of Sigmar for any evidence of Chaos’ influence; in all cases, the inquisitors have returned to Altdorf satisfied (and almost a stone heavier than when they’d arrived in Vogelburgh) that nothing untoward is happening.

Some point to Sandorsz’ chickens as the reason why Vogelburgh hosts one of the largest populations of halflings (relative to the village’s overall size) outside of the Moot. When asked about this by travelers, community elder Bobo Sweetbread responded solely by licking his fingers and grinning.  

Vogelburgh hosts a small garrison of Imperial halberdiers, but is otherwise defended in times of need by a rowdy (and often wholly-drunk) militia and the village’s huntsmen and mountaineers, bolstered by a mustering of halflings. If travelers’ tales can be believed, Sandorsz has even driven the biggest and most aggressive roosters of his flock into battle, allowing the belligerent birds to kick and peck would-be invaders.

***

Yes, chickens! I spotted the Halfling Chicken Riders offered by The Assault Group and was so amused I had to incorporate the idea of giant chickens into my army, and it quickly grew into a theme. Given that this is a 3rd Edition Empire army, I opted for War of the Roses historicals (rather than the 30 Years War vibe that later became standardized for the Empire) for my State Troops and archers, with reissued Citadel C2 and C4 mercenaries from Wargames Foundry to represent my drunken militiamen. Characters came from Satyr Art Studios and Old School Miniatures, and a few further odds and ends came from Midlam Miniatures, Knightmare Games, Lucid Eye Publishing and the stunning Dunkeldorf line of Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay-ready civilians from King Games in Denmark.

Here’s the army list I’m currently working with:

 

The Defenders of Vogelburgh

 

Characters (365 pts)

Burgomeister Livorno Nebelhorn – Level 15 Hero, Light Armor, Shield: 83 pts

Master Harlund Sandorsz – Level 10 Wizard: 85 pts

Karl Hendl – Level 10 Hero, Army Standard Bearer, Light Armor, Shield – 108 pts

Captain Peter Totleger - Level 10 Hero, Light Armor = 57 pts

Sergeant Gerhard Nebelhorn - Level 5 Hero, Light Armor = 32 pts

 

Rank and File (457 pts)

Imperial Army Garrison, “Totleger’s Carvers” – 18 Helblitzen, Standard + Musician = 180 pts

Conscripted Mountaineers - 10 Bergjaeger = 130 pts

Vogelburgh Militia, “Peggy’s Paramours” - 19 Ersatzsolder, Light Armor, Standard + Musician = 147 pts

 

Allies (281.5 pts)

Elder Bobowicz “Bobo” Sweetbread - Halfling Contingent Commander on Pony = 80 pts

"Yeggs Benedict and the Double-Batter Boys" - 12 Halfling Militia, Standard + Musician, Champion = 88 pts

"Shandy Kleer's Pluckers" - 9 Halfling Scouts, Champion – 113.5 pts

 

Monstrous Host (48 pts)

8 Giant Roosters (count as Boars) = 48 pts 

 

Misc. (0 pts)

Der Bierwagen - Baggage Train = 0 pts 

 

Points Total: 1151.5 pts 

 

Now, obviously, this is a very “low level” army – having a Level 20 or 25 Hero leading the defense of this tiny little podunk town didn’t feel right, and I similarly couldn’t justify making Sandorsz a very high-level wizard. There will probably be a few other figures given individual names along the way; for example, the barmaid overseeing the Bierwagen is the Peggy all the militiamen are besotted with. Time permitting, I may add a unit of Halflings mounted on giant roosters to my allied contingent; they're not on the ally list provided in the Warhammer Armies book, but I've statted them up based on the numbers on the main rulebook for 3rd edition.

Since this year we’re adding boasts as an additional self-imposed challenge, I’m committing myself to learning how to apply decals and make them look good as part of the Old World Army Challenge. I’ve got a sheet of heraldry decals with a row of roosters, and ideas of where I can apply them throughout the army – the Burgomeister’s shield, atop the Army Standard, etc., so I'm hoping I can make this work. As you can tell from the 4" steel pins used as standard poles for the Army Standard Bearer and helblitzen unit, I'm intending to go big and dramatic with the flags as well.

And finally, my Entry Fee figure; a classic Citadel C2 Fighter, painted as a tester to see how I like combining contrast paints with normal layering and highlights. I think he came out very well, and I'm looking forward to sending him along to a to-be-determined recipient!

 Good luck in January, everyone!

Bill's Greenskins: Da Old Guard (406 Pts)

 Rank and File Month #1

As the gate gave way, orcs streamed through into the fortress - not the fat, dullwitted creatures Captain Arnulf von Grenzstadt was used to seeing pour up the Black Fire Pass. No, these were lean, sinewy creatures; all gristle, teeth and scar tissue. These were warriors, experienced ones. With howls and shrieks of bloodlust, they spread out from the ruined gateway, rusty blades raised high in anticipation. 

Von Grenzstadt grinned beneath his salt-and-pepper mustache. An experienced orc was still just an orc. Shouting over his shoulder to the halberdiers behind him, he called out "Wine from my own family vineyards for every man who can bring me three orc scalps!"

And then the enormous green foot, composed of crackling arcane energies, dropped on him.

 

I decided I'd start off this year with some old lead - most of this regiment are Citadel figures released between 1985 and 1993, collected off of eBay individually or in small lots, cleaned up and based by me. Only the musician, a Heartbreaker release sculpted by Kev Adams, is a young stand-out. It's a modern casting from Ral Partha Europe of a sculpt done in 1996, but I liked the gong he's carrying and decided he'd be a worthwhile addition instead of continuing to chase after musician figures on eBay. 

Second rank

 

 There's something reverential for me about handling and painting old miniatures; it's a hands-on connection to the history of the hobby for me, and there's maybe a sense of honoring these figures; after lingering for so long in attics or basements, they've been given new life by my hands. Maybe I'm being too solemn about the old boys, but it just seems right to paint them and get them on the table after all these years. 

Third Rank

 

Musician, Standard Bearer, Hero

Shields are a mix of classic Citadel shields that I got mixed in with these eBay lots and a few from Knightmare Games. I wanted to push myself and try painting some checkerboard patterning, which I think worked out pretty well.  

Some favorites among the shields

Joining them is an Orc Shaman from Knightmare Games, a bit bigger than his older brethren but covered in fantastic detail - mushrooms, spider, the bits and bobs on his belt, even the little snotling carrying the book for him. 

January Points Totals:

• 14 Orc Big'uns, Standard and Musician: 152 pts
• Level 15 Orc Hero, Shield and Light Armor: 91 pts
• Level 15 Orc Wizard: 163 pts

Total:  406 pts

Bill's Greenskins II: The Legend Continues

 

After OWAC IV, I still have a lot of Orcs and Goblins left over awaiting paint. In preparing for OWAC V, I really only had to buy a few more figures to round things out, which I think decided me on the path of continuing the Waaagh for another year. 

This year I'll be placing an emphasis on areas of the army list I either didn't touch on at all last year or just barely included; namely, I'll be doing cavalry and magic-users, adding more archers and war machines to my army, and potentially adding to my Hobgoblin Mercenary contingent. In some ways it's a more ambitious plan than what I went into OWAC IV with; I've got a few wizardly point-bombs to help out but I'm still looking at 17 cavalry figures, 35 infantry and some miscelleous crews and such. I've bounced a few ideas around for a second Baggage Cart but nothing really stuck and I'm not sure I'll have the time for it this year anyways. It might end up being a project for the off-season. 

 

Anyways, on to this year's army, story-wise...

Once the screaming died down, Yorzolg and his orcs emerged from the ruined keep they'd been besieged in for weeks to greet their rescuers. His piggish little close-set red eyes swept over the scene before him: Warboars the size of oxen grazed on the bodies of the slain, occasionally squabbling over a particularly juicy bit; between them wound lean, vicious-looking wolves picking at the remains and leaner, more-vicious looking goblinoids plucking greedily at bits of armor or rifling through pockets.

These weren't the fat, dopey orcs Yorzolg was familiar with and saw reflected when he looked into a polished shield; these were cruel, ugly creatures, hunched and snickering as they made their rounds. And many of them were older, creatures of gristle and scar-tissue that had seen more fights than Yorzolg had hot meals. With them came stunted, almost pygmy-like orcs, dressed in tigerskins and armed with flint-tipped arrows. They barely spoke, even among themselves, but Yorzolg could see the fire of madness in their eyes. 

"Oi. You Yorzolg?" rumbled a query from the depths of a blackened iron helm bedecked in horns and tassels. Its wearer sat astride a four-tusked Warboar as big as a rhinoceros, a bearskin cloak draped across armored shoulders. He was without a doubt the biggest orc Yorzolg had ever seen.

"Y-yeh, dat's me. Who'z askin'?" Yorzolg managed to reply, trying to force himself to sound braver than he was feeling.

"Name'z Gorechunk. Heard you wuz throwin' a Waaagh. Came ta find yez hidin' from da Humies."

The rider leaned down, bringing his face close to Yorzolg's. Rancid breath hissed between cracked and yellow tusks as the rider chuckled cruelly.

"Looks like dis 'ere's my Waaagh now. Yez can follow me, so long as yez don't slow us real fightin' Orcs down."

***

List I'm going with is as follows:

• 1 Level 25 Orc Hero, Heavy Armor and Shield, War Boar (163)
• 1 Level 20 Orc Wizard (240)
• 1 Level 15 Savage Orc Shaman (163)
• 14 Orc Big'uns, Standard and Musician (152)
• 1 Level 15 Orc Hero, Light Armor and Shield (91)
• 2 Units of 10 Savage Arrers (75 apiece; 150 total)
• 10 Snortas, Standard and Musician (324)
• 6 Gobbo Wolfboyz, Shortbows (60)
• 1 Goblin Spear Chukka, 4 Crew (37.5)

For a total of 1380.5 points. Now, if I'm extra productive or get some extra time, I'll add to my Hobgoblin Contingent as follows:

• 1 Level 15 Hobgoblin Shaman (155)
• 1 Hobgoblin Contingent Standard Bearer, Heavy Armor (83)
• 1 Hobhound Handler, Light Armor, 5 Hounds (62)

Which will add an extra 300 points. This might be chancy; the Shaman and Hobhound handler are primed and ready to go, but the Contingent Standard hasn't been converted, based and primed yet. So we'll see what happens with that towards the warmer months. 

And finally, my price of admission: A mid-90s Heartbreaker Orc Champion from the hands of Kev Adams. Instead of my usual Goblin Green basing, I went with a suggestion from my better half; noting that this orc looked like he was dressed very warmly, she asked if I was going to do a snow base. I liked the idea enough to go with it, and I think it worked out well. 

 

Bill's Greenskins: The Wrap-Up (1248 pts)

My first Old World Army Challenge marks the single biggest and most successful miniatures-painting project I've ever undertaken. I painted my first miniatures almost 20 years ago, I've done some small projects in the interim, but this is my first ARMY. I'm phenomenally proud of myself for having accomplished so much in six months - during this period, I also wrote, playtested and edited a 10,000-word scenario for the Call of Cthulhu roleplaying game, which will be seeing print towards the end of this year. 

Sorry Iannick, but the humidity was at 87%. A tie was out of the question.

Let's review this Challenge's successes:

Harboth's Archers (May) and Hobgoblins (February)

Orc Boyz (February), Goblins & Trolls (March)

Yorzolg's Chariot (June), Battle Standard Bearer (April), Chuckwagon (May)

Orcs (January), Stone Thrower (April)

And, because I painted some Hobgoblins, Goblin Archers and Black Orcs prior to the start of the OWAC, I decided to put them down on the table as well and see how the Waaagh Kev'Adums looked in its entirety:

Hobgoblins and Black Goblins by Knightmare Games

Barnorsk Great Orcs by Harlequin/Black Tree Designs

Archers by Knightmare and Harlequin/Black Tree, Orcs by Warmonger

What's Coming for OWC V? (Presuming Iannick will have me back)

Yorzolg ducked as another volley of arrows arced over the crumbling stone ruins his army had taken shelter in three weeks earlier. The siege had been a hard one; they'd run out of food, snotlings, and were running low on goblins to eat. The walls were starting to give way under repeated assault by the war-machines of the Empire. 

Slumping against the wall, Yorzolg looked over at the huddled mass of Dem Boyz Ova Dere. Most of them had bandaged wounds and Arzenut was face down, getting an arrow pulled out of his left buttock. 

"Dis might be it, boyz," Yorzolg said glumly. "Dem humies might 'ave us blasted dis time."

In the distance, a horn sounded. Yorzolg's pointed ears pricked up. He knew an orcish trumpet when he heard one.

A gangly orc chanced a look up over the ramparts.

"Oi, Boss!" He crowed. "We'z not ded yet! They'z 'ere ta save our bacon!"

"Who?" Yorzolg crept up, looking over the wall.

Cresting a row of hills, a line of black, bristling war boars, as big as oxen and ten times as ornery. On their backs clung armored orc warriors, swords drawn and voices raised in fury. The boar boyz came charging down, slamming into the back ranks of the Imperial army. Yorzolg could see a boar continuing to trample men even as it choked a handgunner down its gullet, chomping and slobbering as it went. 

The orcs around Yorzolg began to cheer on their relief. The orc next to him pointed and shouted,

"DA PIG 'USSARS ARRIVED!"

These are some Boar Riders from Knightmare, and I've got some Citadel Boar Boyz just waiting for some new boars to ride. I've also got some goblin wolf riders, a unit of Big'uns that I'd initially planned to paint as part of this OWAC, and a bunch of 80s-era Orcs from Kev Adams and the Perry Twins. I was hoping to have some Savage Orc Archers from Black Tree, but the order was placed two months ago (by my mother, for my birthday) and no sign of it yet. Fingers crossed I'll see them. 

And yes, there's an urge to slap some Polish Winged Hussar wings on these boyz.

Bill's Greenskins: Hell on Wheels (240 pts)

 Leader Month

"Oi, Nakscrath, wot'choo got fer me?" rumbled Yorzolg, red eyes narrowed as he tried to stare down the gloom inside the tent.

"Yer gonna love dis, boss. Remember dat absolute mad lad Chaos git last summer?" The smaller orc stumped forward on his peg leg, grinning maniacally.

Yorzolg chuckled cruelly, "Haw haw, yeah I do! Remember wot 'e said right afore I gigged 'im?"

The two greenskins recited in unison, "Blood fer da blood - Aaaaggghhhh!"

"Right, well, we still 'ad 'is fancy ride sittin' around, and so's I scraped off mosta da Chaos gubbins an' painted it up proper Orc-like. Figgered yez'd look right Big Bossy ridin' on dis!"

Yorzolg's eyes widened as Nakscrath pulled a tarp off the chariot. The sides sewn out of human faces had been painted a tasteful red-and-black check pattern, a huge, scowling Evil Sun graced the front and the bronze horned skull on the end of the prow gleamed from being freshly polished. 

"Now dis is right Propa," Yorzolg said approvingly. The war boars already lashed to the chariot snorted and pawed the ground. Nakscrath climbed in, taking up the reins as Yorzolg boarded behind him. 

"Yez'd betta not even fink about farting," Yorzolg growled to the smaller orc.

This was a challenging month for me. I got lucky and got most of the chariot finished before the end of May, but June brought on a bad case of the blues; I lost all energy to do anything after clocking out of my day job, and the thought of picking up a paintbrush felt insurmountable. Painting Yorzolg turned into a grueling forced march of 5 minutes of painting here, 3 there, maybe 10 minutes on a Saturday. I used Contrast paints (Iyanden Yellow and Snakebite Leather) to try and speed things along, then cursed myself out for a week straight for not simply quartering the yellow and black color scheme and doing the full puff-and-slash. And there was no way I was going to manage to do the diorama base I'd originally planned on; a 50x100mm MDF base painted Goblin Green would have to suffice.  

But I made it work. And I was able to glue a Yorzolg I was happy with in behind his driver, glue the boars down to the base and flock it, then glue the chariot to the base and to the boars. It was done.

 

The chariot itself is a Beastman Chariot from Warmonger Miniatures, with the occupants replaced and some slight modifications; the horned skull on the beam is originally from Grom the Paunch's chariot from 4th edition WHFB. I had originally thought I'd manage to put two crewmen (a driver and a banner-bearer) in along with Yorzolg but once I had the pieces in my hands it was obvious that the orcs were just too beefy for that. As is the chariot is comically crowded, and I needed to add a platform for Yorzolg to stand on to be able to see over his driver's shoulders. The back of that platform is covered by a "bumper" made of three goblin shields from Knightmare Games glued to a strip of plastic card. 

Overall, even without the supersized diorama base, I feel like this is a suitably impressive piece to conclude my first OWAC on. Even better, it contains pieces from Warmonger, Citadel and Knightmare, making it representative of most of the companies I've bought figures from for this army. We've got some freehand in there which I'm really proud of (I've become such a big fan of painting these Evil Sun faces) and I even worked in the classic Games Workshop checkerboard pattern. 

The chariot rolled to a halt, the heavy boars grunting against the weight. Before him, stretching out as far as he could see down the Black Fire Pass, Yorzolg could see more orcs gathered than he could even begin to count. 

Throwing his arms wide, sword held aloft, he addressed the teeming horde.

"Boyz, gobbos, an' assorted rest of yez," he began, "tha eyes o' Gork and Mork are on yez today, an' I'm tellin' yez dey's grinnin'! 'Cuz dis right 'ere, yez lot o' greenskins, both da big'uns an' da useless 'uns, yez make up da greatest ting ever seen on dis, or any, world - yer a WAAAAAAGH! NOW LET'S HIT DA MOUF O' DIS 'ERE BLACK FIRE PASS, AN' SHOW DEM HUMIES WOT IS FEAR!"

The crowd began to cheer. Yorzolg grinned, baring his teeth. This was his moment.

So that's it for me for June, and for OWAC IV. Let's see what that comes to points-wise:

• Yorzolg himself is a Level 25 Orc Hero, with Light Armor and a Handweapon - 145
• Chariot with a single Orc crewman, scythed wheels, drawn by a pair of War Boars - 95

For a June total of 240 points, and an overall total for OWAC IV of 1248 points!

Bill's Greenskins: Nock, Draw, Loose! (170.5 pts)

 Rank and File Month #4

"Oi! Yez knows the rules, orcs eat first, then gobbos!" Epigruel snarled at the short, lanky form half-glimpsed over his shoulder as he rushed to dump more mashed turnips into the bubbling pot of stew.

"WOT did yez just call me?" rasped a gruff voice behind him. Epigruel turned.

The greenskins standing there in chainmail and striped trousers were short, yes, and lean - not scrawny, like a goblin. Their tusks and plug-nose spoke of orcishness, and their red eyes were narrowed in fury.

"We'z come all the way from Stirland to join this Waaaagh, and yez tellin' us we'z gotta wait to eat?" the leading greenskin snarled. Epigruel just blinked stupidly.

"Yez an orc?" the cook finally said.

"Yeah, and a Gork-damned hungry one! Now'z get to dishin' or get to dyin', tubbo!"

I feel like this month I've really earned my Oldhammer "cred," so to speak. Not just modern figures sculpted in an Oldhammer style, not just figures I remember from when I entered the hobby in 2001, but Citadel miniatures from the 1980s. Yes, I got my hands on some of Harboth's Orc Archers from 1987, including Harboth himself. 

I haven't got shields for most of them yet, so the points for those haven't been factored in. Tom's Bad Moon Orks inspired me to try putting some stripes on the trousers of the orcs who were wearing them, and of course the big smooth belly-plate Harboth is wearing cried out for some freehand, so I painted my tiniest "evil sun" face to date. It ended up looked more concerned/confused than "evil," but given that it's smaller than my pinky fingernail, I'm not complaining,

And finally, a pair of close-ups of Harboth himself. 

Next up, something I'd hoped to have finished last month for my Wild Card but just couldn't swing it in time. They say an army marches on its stomach, and if you look at the Warmonger Orcs I've spent most of this Challenge painting, you'll realize my army has a lot of stomach. The archers put me over 1000 points of greenskins, and that calls for a Baggage Train, or in this case, a Chuckwagon. 

 

I found "Mighty Epigruel, Orc Chef" on Warmonger's site, and did some quick thinking to figure out another four figures that could accompany him and make up the civilian contingent of this baggage train. I found a goblin chef brandishing a spoon and an overworked snotling carrying a full pot of something, and then brainstormed over the orcs until I decided on a spearman pausing to chug from a bottle (a wagon guard taking a break?) and an orc musician playing a triangle - literally ringing the dinner bell! The boar was also from Warmonger, while the wagon, cauldron and assorted boxes and barrels were 3D-printed. As a final touch, a landsknecht casualty figure from Warlord Games was painted in Averland's colors and loaded into the back of the wagon.

"That's my last bottle of cooking sherry, Crugdrun."

Just as an aside, Epigruel marks the third greenskin in my collection that Kev Adams sculpted with a booger hanging out of their nose.

After some consideration, I opted not to simply use the points cost listed on the box for Harboth and his archers, since I don't have shields for them yet. Instead, I'll go with this:

• "Harboth," Level 10 Orc Hero, Two-Handed Weapon, Light Armor, Shield - 66 pts
• 11 Orc Arrer Boyz, Light Armor - 104.5 pts

For a May total of 170.5 points, and a total score five months into OWAC IV of 1008 points! Not counting casualty figures, and treating each troll as only one, I'm also at 72 figures painted so far during the Challenge, the single largest army project I've ever successfully committed to.