AdamH’s OWAC VI May Post – The Big Boys

Month five, my “leader” month.

I know what you are here for, where in the world was Adam this month? Well, the answer was San Francisco last week and then glorious Birmingham next week!

Therefore, this was always in my plan as my leader month, I needed a month where I didn’t really have to think about paint schemes, and had limited models to actually do.

First up we have the Halfling’s Treeman, I used the standard 4/5^th Edition treeman because I wasn’t a big fan of the Bloodbowl model of the time. I’m not sure how well it matches with the rest of the team but I always liked the model and wanted to have a reason to paint one.

Next is the Minotaur for the Chaos team. Again I used a 4/5^th Edition model rather than the official Bloodbowl one for the same reason, not a massive fan of the original. That said with this one I did do a little conversion, I lopped off his axe and added knuckledusters to both hands. Simple but keeps it on brand for Bloodbowl I think:

Bull Centaurs! Official models this time and painted to match the rest of the Chaos Dwarf scheme. Nothing much to say about these chaps other than I enjoyed painting them.

Finally, we have a Rat Ogre for my as of yet unpainted Skaven team. He is painted in the same scheme as my Skaven army because I see the team being my warlord’s official team.

So there we have it, this post officially marks my completion of the minimum required months in this OWAC! I am not going to lie, this one has been the hardest challenge for me yet, but I am happy with what I managed to get done. I am not stopping there though, there is still one month left, technically my wildcard month but I think I will be using it to finally paint my ratty boys, so look out for those next!

ZeroTwenythree's March Skaven (235 pts)

March Skaven: Clanrats & Clan Moulder (Rank & File)

For March's entry I finished the figures that should have been part of January & February entries but didn't get painted on time. 

First are the final five clanrats from January, including the champion, standard, and musician. The standard is one of the few "newer" figures in my plans. He scales pretty well with the older figures.

Next are some more packmasters, giant rats, rat ogre, and a bonus figure -- Throt the Unclean!

Another bonus, after finishing all of the above figures I thought I would make a small bit of themed terrain. Warpstone!

March Points:

31.5 pts         3 Packmaster with light armour

20 pts            10 Gian rats

38 pts            1 Rat ogre

45.5 pts         5 Clanrats with Spears, standard, and musician

100 pts           Throt The Unclean (lv. 20) w/heavy armor, halberd

235 pts         March TOTAL

423 pts       OWAC TOTAL (so far)

Ian's Mordheim - The Warpstonegnawers

From the bowels of Mordheim comes a band of rejected rats, abhorred by their own kind and seen as the lowest of the low. They grew up with an anomaly that should have get them all kill on the spot: pale fur. They were saved only because none of their rat peers wanted to touch them and mostly by the fact that they fled quickly and far away at the first throw of rock.

I present you: The Warpstonegnawers. In a city without hope, their existence is as hopeless as their quest for warpstone and glory. They named themselves out of despair, to give their band a semblance of strength and nastiness... because they haven't seen yet a piece of this glowing rock.

Kirch-R-Ess-Onh, Assassin Adept

Qhrotch Fullblood, Eshin Sorcerer

Dikch Prideboner and Qoch Bonekrusher,
Wannabe Black Skaven

Tick Nightcutter and Toch Nightfork,
Night Runners

Skrutomch's Gang, Verminfin

Dumb and Dumber, Rat Ogre and Giant Rat

The war band is worth 505 points without Dumb and Dumber. Those last two are lost somewhere and they might join later depending on the Warpstonegnawers success in the streets of Mordheim.

Graeme's OWAC VI Introduction post

OWAC VI: Embracing Chaos...

OWAC V was a complete washout for me. I had grand plans of a glorious Elven force, which never got off the ground. Getting married at the end of January soaked up more time than I expected and I fell at the first hurdle. The trip directly to the field of bones was unexpected and disappointing...
This seriously dented my painting mojo and I lost my motivation. Coupling this with a new job in the middle of the year, I ended up painting a grand total of two minis in 2022.

OWAC has been the main driving force in getting me to the painting desk over the last few years, so I decided that I would re-focus my energies on the prepping for OWAC VI. I was determined to avoid my previous mistakes and go into this challenge as well-prepared as I could. So, I spent months cleaning, de-flashing, basing, and base-coating an impressive amount of Wood Elves. I focussed on mostly compulsory troops, with some special troop types, big monsters, and characters to add some flair.

Some of the compulsory archers

Some additional troops

Great, right?

But doubts and uncertainty had crept in...

I wasn't really feeling the inspiration for painting these graceful fighters.

Being spoiled for choice on what I could paint wasn't helping the decision either.

However, the pile of unpainted Skaven from my first OWAC started calling to me, eager to be unleashed on the battlefield to fight for the Horned Rat...

One of the two minis I managed to paint in 2022 was a Rat Ogre for Oldmanpaints #OctOgre challenge. I really enjoyed the process and end result... an albino Rat Ogre: (https://oldmanpaints.wordpress.com/2022/09/30/octogre-painting-competition/)

Painted mini #1 for 2022

This special OWAC VI edition meant that I wouldn't have to submit a minimum number of points of miniatures each month, just a minimum of 10 models... perfect for troops with a low points cost... Skaven, for example...

Then I saw ZeroTwentythree's introduction post (http://oldworldarmychallenge.blogspot.com/2022/12/zerotwentyhthrees-owac6-introduction.html) and the call of Chaos grew too strong to resist!

My originals plans found their way into the bin...

I'm back #teamskaven!!!

The new plan is simple - paint as many Skaven Clanrats and Slaves as I can. I want to work through as many of these compulsory troops as possible, with the aim of being able to field a legal 3rd edition army, based on Warhammer Armies, by the end of OWAC VI. For this, I want to finish 50 Clanrats and 20 Skavenslaves. If I get bored of painting these, or my sanity falters, I've got plenty of other models which I can turn to for some variation.

Some of the leftovers from OWAC III:

And some of the remaining pile, that still need some prepping:

Yes, you may have spotted the flaw in the plan - I've switched from a well-prepped force, to a furry horde at the last minute... I can't promise this is going to work, but I aim to embrace the Chaos and enjoy trying!

And finally, as an offering to our glorious Overlord: a Bob Olley Chaos Harpy!

These can be Chaotic hosts for a Skaven army and I've never painted one before. I decided to go for a rather more colourful interpretation than usually seen - a colour scheme which hopefully pleases the mighty Overlord.

Painted mini #2 for 2022

Good luck to the rest of the challengers in this special edition of OWAC!

There are some great-looking projects again, with a lot of variety. It's going to be a blast seeing them take shape!

Graeme's Clan Moulder Marauders for May (213.5 points)

The gap in the defender's lines was small, but enough for the horde to exploit. The masses swarmed forward....

I got off to another great start in May, getting a Clan Skryre Warpfire-thrower and hero done quickly. I experimented with different metal effects this month and was pretty happy with how the barrel of the warpfire-thrower turned out. I finally managed to get the right sequence of inks, washes and verdigris. I tried a similar effect to create a bronze-style blade on the Rat Ogre.

Warpfire-thrower team - 81 points

Clan Chieftain (Level 5 Hero ), with spear and light armour - 31 points

I had admired Brendan's mass of Giant Rats from January and March and set my mind on a big unit of them for May. Real-life intervened again.... my job threw a spanner in the works, then tossed in the rest of the toolbox for good measure.... so the heaving mass of Giant Rats turned into a rather modest unit...

Sixteen Giant Rats - 32 points

One tip for the fashion-conscious rat overlord: your giant rats really shouldn't be seen dead without some earrings this summer... flesh wounds are optional.

Three beastmasters - 31.5 points

One Rat Ogre, to bolster the Clan Moulder contingent - 38 points

All of May's force

Warpfire-thrower team - 81 points

Clan Chieftain - 31 points

3 beastmasters - 31.5 points

16 Giant Rats - 32 points

1 Rat Ogre - 38 points

Total for May: 213.5 points

Total for the army: 1085 points

Even though I've reached the 1000 point target, I'm going to keep going - I want to build some Clanrat or Slave units and finally get a banner or two done, so stay tuned for more next month!

Graeme's Skaven Spearhead Force for April (210.5 points)

After the disease and pestilence had taken it's toll, it was time for the Skaven to throw their elite troops into the fray - to smash through the defender's line and make a gap for the following hordes to pour through....

I got off to a good start in April, getting a couple of Rat Ogres and a handler done quite quickly.

Rat Ogres and handler - 86.5 points
Two Rat Ogres, to help punch through the enemy lines, with a handler to keep them in check. I varied the colour of the Rat Ogre fur again this month - there's not many other options when there are just two poses from this generation to choose from.

Then I turned to a bit of cunning Skaven technology.

This is not the angle you want to view one of these from if you're fighting against them...

Jezzail Team - 39 points
A Jezzail team, to keep the enemy archer's heads' down and provide some much-needed missile support.

Then I moved onto the Black Skaven and the challenge really began. I love these model for all the detail, but that very same detail took an enormous amount of time to paint. So many layers of leather, scraps of plate mail, chain-mail, ragged clothes, coils of rope, pouches and bags, earrings(?!).... There's a lot of depth to the modelling as well, with details tucked in almost unreachable places. It almost broke me - I came very close to taking a Mulligan this month, but just about scraped in. I had been planning to to 15 of these in April, but didn't even get close. I may not do any more for  while to let my eyes recover from the strain....
At least the final result seems worth the effort.

1st rank of the Black Skaven

2nd rank of the Black Skaven

Black Skaven - 60 points

Eight Black Skaven - one of the few shock elites available to Skaven forces. Well armed and armoured with halberds and light armour. A whopping 7.5 points each!
Maybe the command group will make an appearance next month...

Offering to the Overlord - 25 points

A word of thanks to Iannick for the time and effort he puts into running this challenge, especially during these strange, stressful, and for some, very busy times.
The challenge has definitely been a great distraction for me, and I'm sure others will agree and add their appreciation.
Once I chose the colour of the cloak I suspected this would be designated the offering model. Plus, since it was Iannick's birthday month, it seemed suitable timing. Iannick, it will be winging its way towards you this week. Hope the cloak meets your approval :-)

All of April's force:

2 Rat Ogres and their handler - 86.5 points
8 Black Skaven - 60 points
Jezzailachis Team - 39 points
Offering - 25 points

Total for April: 210.5 points

Total for the army: 871.5 points (846.5 points, not including the offering)

Next month the work on building up my rank-and-file troops continues. Probably not Black Skaven, though... maybe the command group.
I did make a start on some Giant Rats in April, but these are such low points cost in 3rd Edition, I'll need something expensive to compensate.
The banners I was experimenting with last month didn't materialize, so I really want to add at least one.

Good luck to the other challengers! The armies are really taking shape now and starting to look amazing.