Paging Mr SAGA

Today's post is filed under "Loose Ends."  First up are 8 warriors to round out my Breton warband. I got tired of painting horses in my fall Breton run so these fellows sat while I rested. Combining my Bretons and Normans, I can field 20 mounted warriors and 36 mounted milites, enough for a Hail Caesar army!

I've meant to paint up baggage for SAGA for some time.  SAGA allows you to base baggage on 40mm x 40mm bases up to a 50mm by 100mm.  You can use livestock, civilians, wagons and/or carts to make up baggage.  Each player in the Grand Melee is required to bring 3 pieces of baggage to the event. With this fire under me, I finally got to painting mine up.  I went for a distressed grey wood and I'm reasonably pleased with how it turned out. Carts and peasants are Gripping Beast, as are the mounted warriors above.  

EDIT: I've had requests for the wood painting recipe. Unfortunately, this time it's a little sketchy.  I didn't take notes because I wasn't sure how this was going to turn out. 

I started with black primer, then dark grey applied with a wet brush.  Take care to keep black intact in the recesses where you can. I did this by using the side of my brush. Drybrush with a lighter grey and wash with Army Painter Strong Tone. Finish with a beige green drybrush & highlights on tips and edges. I think I used Vallejo German Camo Beige but I didn't write it down and I have LOTS of light greens. I hope this is helpful and I will take notes next time!

You'll note my baggage train isn't carrying anything at all.  My thinking is that villains and marauders will pass on sacking an empty baggage train and pursue something more loot-tastic. Let's see how this strategy works down at the club.

Last up is my reworked Norse Gael warlord.  After a frustrating stretch of 4 losses, I decided to tweak my list by running my warlord with a Dane axe.  This lowers his armor class but he'll dish out more hits and get 5 dice with the "Howling Axes" ability.  I repainted his base to match the rest of the warband and added a second figure.  The end result is a nice improvement on the original. In his first game out, my warlord not only survived a number of enemy strikes, he also brought home a win. I can only conclude that Odin approves of this revision.

Warlord Wednesday

As the winner of my 200 follower giveaway, Robert Hingley requested I paint up a Viking warlord. This fellow is a down payment on Robert's first SAGA warband.  SAGA allows up to a 50mm base for warlords, and I put it to use here.  The figures are by Gripping Beast and the banner is a transfer by the always fabulous Little Big Men Studios.  I can hear the warlord shouting "Quote the raven, nevermore, ya buggers!" He may not have said "buggers."  My ability to translate old Norse is a bit spotty but you get the idea.  Here's hoping this stout fellow serves Robert well on the tabletop!

I also went to work fixing my Breton warlord's dappled gray.  The dappling was too small so I applied larger mid gray spots as a base to scale up in lighter and larger gray spots. From 3 feet, this looks much better than my first try. I'm tempted to flatten it out with a wash but I've ruined a round of dappling already with a too dark wash. I  must remember Dean's advice to "paint for effect."  Always good advice!

Over the weekend, I stopped by the North Star Tournament.  North Star is a superbly run and attended Warhammer event.  This link takes you to their Facebook page with pictures of  37 gorgeous themed tables and spectacular fantasy armies. I recognized many of the players from SAGA Storm and everyone I spoke to was having a blast.

I'm sorely tempted to paint up a WH fantasy army and join the fun next year. Those of you who've been down this road know Warhammer is not an easy lift when it comes to the  rules, buying armies and painting.  My gaming plate is full so I'd have to push something off to add this project.  Stay tune.  If I make the crossover, it will be impossible to miss.

Breton warband for SAGA

In the 4th century, Bretons serving in the Roman army were posted out of Britannia and into Amorica (Brittany). To escape Anglo-Saxon and Scoti invaders, a second wave of Breton settlers followed. Charlemagne subjugated the Bretons for a time. A combination of Breton revolts, military victories and devastating Viking raids forced the Franks to eventually concede the independence of Brittany. Somewhere in there, Breton King Morvan fought a personal combat with a Frankish chieftain that left both dead.  I'm not entirely sure how the opposing armies squared that unexpected result.

The 10th century saw a Breton campaign to drive out the Norse who settled on the Loire River. The Bretons and Normans were at war for a time but that didn't stop them from serving in William the Conqueror's left flank at the Battle of Hastings.  Breton history is enough to make your head spin!

In SAGA, Breton levies and mounted troops are javelin armed. Their battle board has 8 shooting abilities and I've been studying to see which stack well before my first game with them. Bretons suffer a -1 to their armor in melee, which means I'll stick to shoot and scoot tactics.

These figures can pull triple duty for me. First, I'll run them in SAGA as a Breton warband. I can also port them into Crescent and the Cross to buff out a Spanish army. Lastly, I can field them in a Hail Caesar Norman army. Portability for the win! 

All figures in the warband are by Gripping Beast, topped with LBMS shield transfers painted in.  I'm tempted to paint the hero King Morvan in a chariot. For now, I do like the look of this warlord hunting the battlefield with javelin in hand and no helmet! Those are the kind of risks that men respect.  They're also the kind of risks that get you killed in personal combat.   

These figures looked a bit dull at the finish line so I added a 2nd highlight to make them pop. You must look good to feel good and I do hope these javelinmen are feeling good right now.

I painted this warband while listening to Marc Morris' The Norman Conquest audiobook. It's fantastic overview of the conquest of England, and most of SAGA's "Heroes of the Viking Age" make an appearance in the book.  Its a perfect companion piece to SAGA gaming.