Sybou - chaos army - month 5 - Rank and files n°4 - 350 points

 Hello to all fellow owacers, here is my humble publication for the month of May.

It 's a rank and files month, so necessary to finish two of my units, the beastmen and the dragon ogres.

Dragon ogres:

They gather 174 points. They are 2 and are ready to join their brethrens.

We have the classic dragon ogre that will be used as a champion. The other is pretty good with a sword.

An other angle

They both wear red armour and scales with some grey skins. That will make them match with my ogres.

The beastmen:

I still had to finish 16 beastmen to complete the 50 guys regiment. Here there are:

Four doggoes

Here, we have 2 Khorne beastmen with vicious warhammers. Then we have two beastmen from the C27 line made by Kev Adams: Shearmone and Bolbone!

Shearmon wears a part red part bony armor while Bolbone chose a completely red armor. Both have faces on their chest armor.

Bolbone is my favorite of the squad, with his little pointy helmet.

Four Broos

Some really classic sculpts from the Runequest line. One of them is a fierce rhinoceros with spear and shield.

Four really diverse goons

First we have a slug/ snake guy named "slug man" then from the C27 line, we have Bendle who receives a new knife, then a kind of lizard/ crocodile guy and Ruttrot a boar guy from C27.

Unique beasts and Blood priests

The unicorn broo who's really cool. I have a couple of the unicorn broos and thought of a campaign where a beast shaman poisoned the river of Athel Loren creating unicorn beastmen. The wood elves player having as a mission to root the beastmen from the forest and have bonus point if any unicorn beastmen is destroyed.

I have a Knightmare unicorn champion that could make a cool first levels boss.

Then 2 "blood priests" a cyclopean monkey with a sacrificial knife and "Half beast" that is really mutated. Like two faces guys, one side being mutant the other being more beastguy.

To finish we have a slaanesh beastman. At first, I didn't like the slaanesh beastmen but i changed my mind. I painted this one as a mixed between noble and SM bondage. The gold, the bony blade and pale skin contrast with the leather armor and boot.

I make his mouth really bloody.

The other face of "Half beast" and a zoom on the slaanesh guy

Here are a couple of photos of the whole batch of May. They're really colorful and look pretty good. I'm happy with the result and they should my last beastmen to paint. I still have many things to paint but I think these guys were my last beastmen.

I still have to do:

• 1 Wizard on disk
• 1 offering!
• 1 Wildcard month

The wildcard will be a really old project, so it is not win yet for this year.

Good luck everyone for the last month of OWAC 2024!

                                                                                                                                        Sybou

Bye from the squad

Steve's Cult of the New Colossus: In My End is My Beginning

It may be my wrap up post but you lot aren't getting away without a few more literary references! As Eliot says in his Four Quartets, "What we call the beginning is often the end and to make an end is to make a beginning. The end is where we start from." Well that's definitely where I'm at with this project! I've heard it said many times that an army is never finished and it seems almost a shame if one should find themselves guilty of such a thing. Again to paraphrase Eliot, to finally finish something and put it to rest or reach a final end is to arrive at "the still point of the turning world. Neither flesh nor fleshless; Neither from nor towards; at the still point, there the dance is... Neither ascent nor decline. Except for the point, the still point, there would be no dance, and there is only the dance."  Sounds a bit sterile and lifeless to me so I think the Cult of the New Colossus will live on - but more on that later.

Writing a post without having anything new painted felt a bit odd so I decided the Cult deserved and indeed needed a new and bigger scenic backdrop. Having referenced Witch-haunted Sylvania as their entry point in to the Empire, I felt I'd best represent it visually somehow.

Water-mixable oils meant I wasn't relegated to the shed because of the smell and I must say I rather enjoyed the process. I'd done water colour painting for a number of years as a kid but the oils were definitely what were needed for this job, especially as I'm no oil painting myself and hopefully this'll soften the blow of my ugly mug later.

I also felt that a Cult of the Colossus post wouldn't be complete without a few narrative bits so I hope you'll indulge me (and everyone's favourite Cult everyman character, Wermius) one last time...

Darkness was falling and already it was hard to see any distance in the shadows of the towering pines either side of the highway. Wermius swayed with the rocking of the cart in which he rode, lulled almost asleep with the soothing motion. In that strange and semi-lucid twilight between dream and consciousness, he mused over the journey he had somehow survived. They were safe for now and heading Northwards in a motley assortment of looted carriages and ox-carts but they had suffered many tribulations to get to this point. Long and hard had been the road with almost insurmountable obstacles but by the will of the Colossus they had made it through. He could hardly reconcile the outlandish sights and visions he had seen with the mundanity of his own existence. The ecstasies and agonies he had borne with equal humility and the awe and terror of what they had unleashed on the world seemed like some fever dream when compared with the banality of his current reality, being gently jostled in the back of a wagon in to much needed sleep.

He felt it were as though he was out of time and place whilst on the road, untouchable and ghostlike. A stillness came over him and he almost felt that he was at the epicentre of an ever-turning wheel, the world slowly rotating about him, dark shadows flitting by inconsequentially in the night. The rattle and groan of the cart diminished and he sensed his vision darkening at the edges of his vision. Was this the gentle kiss of sleep or something else? Shuddering he roused himself from that quietude that had the feel of the grave about it and set his mind to the task in hand once they reached the gates of the Empire and what might be waiting for them further down that dark road... 

It's certainly been an interesting journey this first OWAC of mine! Knowing what I'm normally like (easily led astray by good movies, good booze and good company - not necessarily in that order) and knowing that there were no major gaming events like BOYL on the horizon back in December 2020 that would normally motivate me to paint lots of things, I decided to really push myself in terms of numbers and upping the quality of my painting for the OWAC. I think it paid off and certainly in my opinion this is probably the best painted army I now own.

There's been quite a few firsts for me on this project - first real go at Chaos, first time using a wet palette, first time using colour shift paints, first time using an airbrush (in a very limited way!). Also first time I've ever painted a proper back drop or used oil paints in any meaningful way. For all this I thank you Iannick and your fantastic Old World Army Challenge!

On a personal level, this project has really helped me through some pretty rough times. I know many of my fellow competitors have also had their struggles and I salute you all for your efforts and the motivation and enjoyment all your fantastic projects have provided . Whilst lockdown itself hasn't been too onerous for me and was an actual boon in terms of painting time, it's been at work that I've had issues. Being put in a position of nearly losing my dream job and losing all faith in management thanks to their behaviour put a big dent in my morale. Add to that losing a lot of work friends and colleagues who decided to move on rather than put up with the crap and I was not a happy bunny. Thanks again OWAC for providing a release from the real world. Idle hands and the Devil's work and all that! ;) 

I'm probably droning on and gushing a bit too much but I wouldn't be exaggerating if I said this Challenge wasn't something special. You've created a wonderful thing here Iannick!

Right, down to the nitty-gritty. What did I paint and how many points was it? Not that I usually count points when gaming...

Gorice Bathorey of the Red Hook - Chaos Knight (L20 Hero) riding a winged Dragon, magical heavy armour (Blinding Glare), lance, magic weapon (Parasitic Blade) - 892 points

Fowzt Zapalous - Soulflayer (L20 Wizard), Chaos Armour - 290 points

Piros Horog - Chaos Champion (L15 Hero), Heavy armour, handweapon, shield, magic standard - Bane Banner - 279 points

The New Colossus - Greater Demon - 750 points

10 Minotaurs 506

Pasiphae’s Brood

Hand weapons, standard

Led by L10 Hero - light armour double handed weapon

7 Chaos Centaurs 464

Chiron’s Children

L10 hero, light armour, hand weapons, shields

Dragon Ogre                                87

Hydra                                            200

Cockatrice                                    150

34 Beastmen            568 points

Gorgo's Flock

L10 champion, standard bearer, musician, light armour shields, hand weapons

30 Beastmen            516 points

Prosper's Bane

L10 champion, standard bearer, musician, light armour shields, hand weapons

War Altar                275 points

The Maiden in White

4 guards and magic standard

L10 Wizard

12 Mounted Chaos Warriors 1456

Brother Behell and his Outriders of the Knights Terminus

Chaos Steeds, Standard, heavy armour, shields, barding, lances, hand weapons

15 Chaos Warriors on foot 1184

Brother Gogol and his Brutal Berserkers

Heavy armour, shields, hand weapons, standard

14 Thug archers 222

Giudas Preest and his Leather Rebels

Marauder leader and Champion, standard, musician, light armour, bows, hand weapons

25 Thugs led by a Marauder 264

Kurtz and his Hollow Men

Light armour, hand weapons, shields, standard

17 Cultists of the Red Redemption 249

Marauder leader and Champion, standard, musician, light armour, shields, flails

Oh and I've always wanted to recreate those brilliant pictures of Eldar dreadnoughts breaching the walls of some poor unfortunate Ork Fortress on some medieval planet that feature in the 3rd ed Warhammer Siege book. I heard somewhere that they used a cigar to produce the smoke effects. Although I did feel like celebrating I wasn't quite prepared to spark up my Romeo Y Julietta Churchill that I've been nursing for a while so I figured my pipe would do the job just as well!

Here's the obligatory army shot - I was going to move them inside and set the army up on the coffee table for the Bryan Ansell style shot but that glass in my hand and the lateness of the hour put paid to that plan!

Yes - I smoke a pipe now. Pipes are cool.

Welcome to the Shed of Doooooooommmmmm!

Join us... or you'll never leave. At least in one piece.

This is certainly not the end of this project - the eagle eyed among you will notice a number of absences and additions to the original list. I have a couple of boxes of also-rans who will be receiving some paint in the coming months so I can hopefully clear the decks of Chaos cultists (until some new shiny ones I don't own yet come to my attention!). Assuming I have a place in the next OWAC, in which I'd dearly love to participate, I have a few ideas for the next project. One would be a companion piece to this army in the form of an Empire army. I have a few plans on how to match the Cult of the New Colossus in terms of theme and narrative - Jaeckel's Lost Crusade from 2020's OWAC was a big inspiration for the Cult and I imagine my Empire force to be a Home Guard type version of it with a bit of Hammer Horror Witchfinder General religious intolerance thrown in for good measure. Alternatively I have a bunch of Amazons who'd be a much more manageable project but who wants to follow Mr  Paul "Double D" after his stonking and beautiful Amazon host this year! Then there is the lure of the Steppe - I have various Nick Lund Orcs, a horde of Satanic Panic and Fantasy Warlord Hobgoblins as well as various other gribblies that would make for a great Vassal army of the Great HobGobla Khan. In a similar vein I have a few bits and pieces that would make a nice start on a Cathay army, although other than Foundry's Citadel pieces that would not feature much old lead. Hmm decisions, decisions...

I'll leave it to Brother Wermius to say the last words...

And yet somnolence persisted despite Wermius' efforts and as his senses failed him and the dark closed in, he watched the wagons ahead plunge through the tunnel of night and trees and his thoughts veered towards mortality and the fate of all things. Whether he spoke out loud or in the confines of his self, he knew not, as sleep overtook him. Though the words seemed bleak at times he took some comfort from them though there was not much to take,

O dark dark dark. They all go into the dark,

And we all go with them, into the silent funeral,

Nobody's funeral, for there is no one to bury.

I said to my soul, be still, and let the dark come upon you

Which shall be the darkness of God.

With a hollow rumble of wings, with a movement of darkness on darkness,

And we know that the hills and the trees, the distant panorama

And the bold imposing facade are all being rolled away-

There is no end of it, the voiceless wailing,

No end to the withering of withered flowers,

To the movement of pain that is painless and motionless,

To the drift of the sea and the drifting wreckage,

The bone's prayer to Death, its God. 

One last thanks before I go - thanks Mr Eliot!!!

Slaaneshchild ´s infamous Slaangors (296 points)

Rank & File month #4

Done at last !!!!

With the reopening of bars and terrasses in France, it has been very hard to finish those little guys :)

So here is my contribution for this month, a full regiment of 18 Slaangors led by a champion and a shaman, Oswald the Greedy

As you can see, there are a lot of Knightmare miniatures' models, i mixed them with Citadel's and Otherworld's. I like this little messy zoo !

I kept my pastels colors to fit with the others, here are some details : 

Spicky and Piggy

Yes, my head is a head of a penis

Bitty and Pinky

Capitaine Crochet

the eternal warriors :D

Oswald himself

the Zoo

18 Beastmen with standard and 2 hand weapons : 228 pts

1 Beastman Shaman : 68 pts

Total : 296 pts !

Steve's Cult of the New Colossus: Beastmen! (1359 points)

Rank & File #3

 Brother Olaus Wermius Augustine surveyed the pandemonium before him, eyes bright with both academic fervour and the reflected light of the pallid moon that waxed and leered horribly above the unearthly scene. However his nose still hadn’t come to terms with the wall of musk and noisome odour that assaulted it and his ears still rang with the cacophony of squawks, yelps and guttural snarls emanating from the braying crowd. Yet still he endeavoured to focus all his concentration on the task at hand. For he was Cataloguer and Compiler of all the wonders and miracles the New Colossus felt fit to bestow upon the world. It was his calling to codify and crystallise the teachings that could be learned from this munificence in to the one, all embracing orthodoxy that would inevitably bring the word to the world. The endless march that was their mission to bring truth to the unbeliever had been called to a halt for the night and his brother clergy, terminators and the rest of the Crusade were setting up pickets or bedding down for a few hours sleep. This brief respite though was an excellent opportunity for Olaus to observe the behaviour and mien of these most outlandish followers of their God and he must not waste it. 

Yet even with this important work at hand, the young cleric couldn’t help but marvel at how far he had come after escaping the shadow of his former teacher. That old fool’s inhibitions and petty worries had threatened to bury Olaus in all the stultifying blanket of dogma and petty moral precepts that the Royal College of Magic cowered behind. How could that old vulture not see that the interminable hours spent in studying the complex symbolism and endless rituals needed for even the most minor spell were such a waste. The memory of the acres of dusty parchment and ancient forbidden magical texts that were fearfully hidden away because of the knowledge they contained still filled him with a burning anger. No - magic was a living, dynamic thing and true power and knowledge could be had only if one were to commune with those who would share it. If one had the courage and force of will to reach out into the black gulfs of essence and entity, to push the confines of mind and spirit beyond all spheres of force, matter, space and time then one would find themselves in the company of those other Gods!  How fitting it was that that pathetic shadow of a man had died as he lived... afraid. His death had been at the hands of one of the foetid and rushing, airy presences the old Wizard had so greatly feared. To his surprise, Olaus had been its summoner.

Brother Olaus admiring some dystopian surrealism.

So a while back I set out my plans for this project and envisioned a low fantasy, human dominated, sinister cult hellbent on manifesting their new God, the New Colossus. I think I may have got a bit carried away...

I always knew I had quite a lot of Beastmen to include in the army but I've been racking my brains for some time now as to how they would logically fit in with the narrative so far. Why would the gullible down and outs of the Empire, who have been indoctrinated in to the cult, gladly (or at least grudgingly) rub shoulders with a slavering horde of Beastmen? And what about the newest additions (and last minute change of plan) the Nemesis style Terminators? Fanatics sworn to hunt down and exterminate the heretic and non-believer - of the New Colossus at any rate. Although they're not carbon-copies of the alien hating Terminators in Nemesis the Warlock, I still imagine them to be fanatics and purists who wouldn't necessarily view swarms of mutants with a kindly eye. 

My Beastman horde was varied enough to bring to mind the Chaos warband that destroys Konrad's village in the first of the Konrad trilogy of Warhammer novels. That was my initial inspiration for these units, however, I'd had an idea for a while to mine the weird and wonderful depictions of medieval demons for possible colour schemes - making them akin to devils and demons seemed to fit nicely with the creepy religious and inquisitorial cult feeling the army had so far. Also medieval demonology seemed such an interesting topic (and definitely not a good way of procrastinating getting started on my painting!) that I began reading up on it anyway! 

From perusing some pretty eye-catching Demonic bestiaries, I ended up reading up about more normal bestiaries, which nonetheless included some pretty fantastical creatures. Thanks to an interesting article by Sarah Bond, I learnt how these bestiaries detailed real and mythical plants and creatures but were more than just animal encyclopedias. In fact they, through allegory and symbolism, they also illustrated the teachings of the Church and its worldview.

Doves hide from their natural enemy, the Dragon, in the Peridexion tree - much as the sinner was supposed to seek shelter in the church from the Devil.

What's this got to do with Chaos Beastmen, Warhammer Fantasy and the Cult of the New Colossus I hear you cry! Well, this excerpt from Sarah Bond's article, where she quotes Mittman from his book Maps and Monsters in Medieval England, might shed some light, 

"[To Augustine], the seemingly impossible, unnatural elements of monsters — humans with dog-heads, with fish tails, lions with bird wings, immortal creatures, fire-breathing creatures, and all the rest — are possible because God established the laws of nature, and they do not apply to him. Indeed, by breaking them, Augustine believed, God showed his infinite power."

This was my way in - to the devotees of the Cult, the very existence of Beastmen, many of whom share at least some characteristics with the physical manifestation of the New Colossus, prove the existence of their God and his ability to overturn the natural order of things. In medieval times the laws of nature and the idea of the Chain of Being were what underpinned the social order. It set men above plants and animals, Kings above men and of course God and his many ranks of angels above Kings. It doesn't take a huge stretch of the imagination to envisage a similar world view amongst the human civilisations of the Old World and what would be more chaotic for an aspiring deity like the New Colossus than to upend a heirarchy such as this!

The young theologian was snapped out of his reverie by a sudden crescendo in the demoniac wailing coming from the crowd before him. The creatures squabbled and fought amongst themselves in a seething mass of bestial features and strangely human forms. Yes, he thought to himself, bringing his thought back in to a semblance of order - The New Colossus promised a great inversion of all things. Those who were weak would be put in a position of strength, those with nothing would be rewarded with plenty and the downtrodden would in turn stamp their perceived oppressors in to the dust. Yet there was more to these populist and rebel rousing promises than first met the eye. Olaus Wermius Augustine let out a yelp for before his very eyes was the proof - the miraculous proof, from the hand of the Colossus himself. He wasn't concerned merely with righting the wrongs of unjust society. No - the order of nature itself would be changed and the very Chain of Being upended!

These fine fellows are Medieval Demons from Antediluvain Miniatures and were a mid-month addition! 

Once I'd got the idea of medieval creppiness in my head I knew I had to have them - luckily I managed to restrain myself enough to only buy these three. For now...

What I really like about them is that they are based on actual medieval paintings of Devils and Demons. A particular favourite is this friendly looking chap from Durer's engraving, Knight, Death and Devil!

Including the Giant Demon was a must as he reminded me a little (more for his size than looks) of the huge and constantly mutating Chaos Master from the Lone Wolf gamebook, Prisoners of Time.

So having added a bit of devilry to my beastly band, I was also rather tempted by the Hellmouth that Antediluvian also sell...

The Hellmouth was literally that - the jaws of or gateway to Hell.

... until I remembered a rather similar concept from one of Beksinki's paintings that I had included in my introductory post as part of the inspiration for this project.

After a bit of research (I am no sculptor believe me!) I figured that using an anatomical model of a skull would be a good foundation to wrap Das airdrying clay around to give me the form I wanted. Thanks to a pretty poor ebay seller who sent me half a skull with a hole in it (thanks to inadequate packaging), this turned in to a bit of a race against time! 

I'll find a use for this poor chap another time...

I got another cheapish skull and luckily the clay just about dried out in time to paint and base it for this month's entry.

Don't think I've done anything with clay since secondary school so this was a rather fun departure from all the recent brushwork. A lick of paint, some Mordant Earth and pigments for the base and voila!

God knows what I'll use it for other than a weird bit of terrain but it was fun and I was quite glad to work a bit of Beksinski in to the project!

Anyway, back to the Beastmen and another word of thanks to Steve Casey! I mentioned a box full of old and unloved lead he sold me for a pittance some years ago - a few of the old Ral Partha Chaos warriors from my last post were found within its depths. Well a lot of the following miniatures were also in that box, daubed with old muddy paint jobs and looking extremely unpromising. I'm very glad I managed to rescue them and give them a new lease of life!

The Beastmen, as those blinkered by superstition and ignorance called them, had been almost a myth to Olaus in his past life - as they were to the many who were content to live their petty lives confined to the small and placid islands of ignorance they dutifully created for themselves. Now he had unbridled opportunities to study, to classify and to celebrate their incredible existence. How criminal it was that these magnificent beings were forced to scrape out meagre lives at the edges of society, forever ostracised and feared and for what?

Feared merely for their existence and their honest acceptance of the true expression of themselves, a beautiful synergy of beast and man, greater than the sum of their parts. Oh how they made those hypocrite weaklings who oppressed them pale in comparison - Cowards who would hide behind weasel words and speak with fork tongues. Those who would have authority sit on their shoulder and chatter like an ape. Those who would listen to their "betters" with asses' ears and follow blindly on like the kid and the calf or else suck from the teat of ill gotten privilege like spoilt lap dogs whilst their boorish masters gorged themselves at the trough. What a poor and bestial thing was a Man when compared with the noble savage he held in such contempt.

The brow of Olaus Wermius Augustine dripped with fervent sweat as he furiously scribbled this new litany in his great masterwork, the Compendium rarissimum totius Artis Magicae sistematisatae per celeberrimos Artis hujus Magistros. Painstakingly he catalogued every miraculous new form he could identify from the unruly flock and blessed them each in turn. He thrilled at the fact that what to the uninitiated were seemingly impossible and unnatural “monsters” were in fact only possible because of the transformative blessings of the God he worshipped. Their very being was miraculous and incontrovertible proof of the existence and power of the New Colossus and to deny this truth could mean only death - for thou shalt not suffer the unbeliever to live!

Overcome by both the howls of his uncanny congregation and the ecstasy of his epiphany, Brother Olaus raised his voice in unison and in prayer,

“But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee: and the birds of the air, and they shall tell thee. Speak to the earth, and it shall answer thee: and the fishes of the sea shall tell. Who is ignorant that the hand of the Lord hath made all these things?"

I was going to attempt to record where these minis were all from but as it is fast approaching the witching hour and March is soon to become April, I'll leave you to play Spot the Manufacturer!

Suffice to say, this lot were great fun to paint and any plans I had to batch paint them quickly fell down as they were all so full of individual character.

The wet palette came in to its own as there was a lot of wet blending! Enjoy the photo dump!

I had a lot of fun with the banners for these guys. First up is a great old Orc from Gremlin Miniatures. His sculpted banner was just the right shape for suggesting horns and antlers - a trait a lot of these Beastmen share with the physical manifestation of the New Colossus. I rather liked the totem the Ral Partha Orc is carrying but as I couldn't fit any lettering on the sculpted banner, he got a tomato puree tube flag added on so I could emblazon their motto on to it.

I'd collected quite a few images for ideas for banner designs and was having a hard time choosing one for the other unit. I've always had a soft spot for Blake's paintings and his depiction of Nebuchadnezzar seemed to be a good fit thematically for their contempt of non-believing "pure" humans. The legend goes that the ruler ended up losing his mind thanks to his boundless hubris and he ended up reduced to animalistic madness!

I decided to couple that with a bit of one of Hamlet's monologues (not at all influenced by my opinion of the state of things these days!) and it all seemed to come together nicely. 

Incidentally, this is the best rendition of that speech in my opinion!

I'll leave you with one last narrative excerpt. As with previous entries, there was a lot of metal listened to while painting this lot and one song in particular seemed quite pertinent to the subject matter - Under the Boughs by The Sword. I just so happened to have a strange little miniature of a lady and her two handmaidens - she seemed perfect for the White Maiden in the song. Some of the lyrics became the Beastmens' chant so it seemed fitting to make a War Altar.

As Olaus watched, enrapt in the pandemonium, he slowly became aware of a form of order beginning to coalesce amongst the swirling chaos of cavorting figures. Where bodies a moment before writhed and contorted, seemingly at random, there seemed to come a uniformity of movement. The undulating mass slowed and began to part to allow the passage of a strange litter borne by four great brutes. How fierce was their aspect and yet how gently they bore their sweet burden and with such tender glances from time to time they bestowed upon their fair charge. Unsure as to whether it was some effigy they carried and worshipped or a living and breathing being, Olaus craned forward from his vantage point to better observe the ritual. 

Much as the unruly throng had ordered itself reverently before the object of their adoration so too did the deafening chatter and mowing gradually shift towards a kind of rude harmony, despite the continued clamor of discordant horns and drums. To the unsympathetic ear it would have been nought but brutish gabbling but Olaus, in his new wisdom, knew better…

Watch us come from lands all around

To hear the maiden in white

Sing her songs of sorrow and love

In the hall of the king tonight

She was stolen from under the boughs

Away from the sheltering glens

Imprisoned by wizards to sing for a serpent

In the guise of a man

Olaus raised his not insubstantial eyebrows at the sight of what must be another deity. He would have to check with higher authorities whether this was apostasy or orthodoxy. The chant went on and he held his misgivings in reserve.

We come with teeth and tusks and talons

We come with horns and hooves and claws

A wailing cry is heard deep within the forest

A bestial host heeds the king stag's call

He needn’t have worried as it soon transpired and Olaus began to wonder if the King Stag was some new manifestation of the Colossus himself. His supposition was confirmed as bottles and flagons were produced amongst the drove, obviously supplied by their human brethren, and just as soon imbibed. The effect on the gathering was immediate. A crude form of call and answer began to evolve, somewhat reminiscent of the responsorial psalms of the Redemptionists, Brother Olaus noted to himself. It seemed that their primitive totem, the White Maiden had been subsumed in to the wider beliefs of the Cult. Hardly regular, Olaus tutted to himself, but after all - their God moved in mysterious ways.

That's a brave god and bears celestial liquor.

I will kneel to him. Great Colossus! King Stag!

I'll swear upon that bottle to be thy true subject;

For the liquor is not earthly. Great Colossus! King Stag!

And I will kiss thy foot: I prithee, be my god. Great Colossus! King Stag!

And praise the White Maiden - mother and comfort to us all

Aye Lord Colossus, King Stag. She will become thy bed I warrant.

And bring thee forth brave brood.

34 Beastmen            568 points

Gorgo's Flock

L10 champion, standard bearer, musician, light armour shields, hand weapons

30 Beastmen            516 points

Prosper's Bane

L10 champion, standard bearer, musician, light armour shields, hand weapons

War Altar                275 points

The Maiden in White

4 guards and magic standard

L10 Wizard

Well it's been quite a month and I return to work tomorrow after being furloughed since Christmas. I certainly wouldn't have managed this output without all the spare time on my hands and I think I've broken the back of this project now! Plenty more to do yet though...