Mutatawwi'a for Saga

Mutts are my Groundhog Day project. I keep painting, selling and repainting them. And usually getting a few reps in playing them as well. Looking back, this is my 4th version. This one started with me reacquiring 16 unpainted mounted Saracens I'd traded away to my buddy Brent years ago. They sat in a box until fate saw them boomerang back to me in another trade. I decided to go for a bright, colorful version. Basically, the opposite of the last version I painted a couple of years ago. Almost all Footsore figures with a few Gripping Beast Western Knights used, Gripping Beast Objective Markers and a warlord on a camel by Warlord Games.  

I decided to hand paint the shields and banner using only black, tan and white to pull the warband together. The shields started out looking quite dull and uninspiring so I slapped down highlights, washes and dirt to raise them up a bit. Overall, I'd count it as a success! 

In Saga, Mutts are a wild and wooly bunch. Really a fun lot to play.  I think they'll make a good opponent for the Teutons I've started painting. 

And to close, here are my prior 3 versions of Mutts! 

Painting Footsore Arabs

Reader alert...today's post is a bit wordy.  I’m sharing how I painted my Mutatawwi’a warband hoping it might help someone get their their figures on the table.  I like lots of options for each faction I paint and play in SAGA and these Mutts muster out at 2 warlords, 8 Naffatun, 32 warriors and 16 hearthguard.

Below are the Footsore Miniatures Arab packs I used for the Mutts:

12 Arab Heavy Infantry = 3 points of foot Hearthguard.

12 Arab Heavy Cavalry = 3 points of mounted Hearthguard.  Foot Hearthguard are versatile but I also love the speed of mounted troops. That means I paint up both.

32 Arab Infantry with Swords & Spears = 4 points of warriors.

8 Naffatun. 4 = 1 point of Dogs of War Naffatun.  Naffatun are indispensable with Mutts because they dish out fatigue easily while the battleboard allows you to shed your fatigue easily.  You can only field 4 Naffatun in an Arab warband but I bought 8 so I could paint 2 sets, one in black and one in color.   

The detail on the figures is exquisite and there is LOTS of variety in the poses.  I adore the character sculpted into each face.  After a suitable period of admiration, sort and prep your figures for basing. Scrape off any bits of flash or lines with an X-Acto knife or small file.  Lucky for us, there’s very little cleanup needed on Footsore figures because they’re superbly cast.  

I use Renedra’s 25mm plastic rounds for basing and attach figures using a hot glue gun. It’s fast, easy and adheres perfectly.  I use FireForge Games plastic spears but metal spears work even better.  Most hands are predrilled but for the few that aren’t, a twist of a pin drill and you’re done.

For flocking, I use a mix of Woodland Scenic’s fine, medium and large ballast (1/3 each).  Apply a coat of white glue (PVC) to the base and dip it into the ballast.  If you miss any bits, put down a spot of glue and dip again.  Once the ballast dries completely, apply a wash of 70% water, 30% white glue.  When it dries, this wash locks up the ballast for good.

Once the ballast is dry, it’s time to prime.  

I use Army Painter’s Leather Brown for most Dark Ages priming including the mounted Moors below.  If you leave it intact on the spears, shoes and the back of the shields, it saves some brushwork. I use black for Hearthguard so I can easily drybrush chainmail and metal.  I use grey for the warriors for a neutral base for painting white robes.

My warrior paint scheme is white uniforms .  Shields, turbans and sashes are done in bright colors.  There are many ways to paint white and this one is a bit more work than it has to be. You can prime white and wash for shadows.  You can paint white neatly over a grey primer or light grey base coat, leaving grey in the folds for shadows.   I use a Vallejo Khaki to Sand Yellow to White transition.  Khaki lightened with some white is my base color.  Vallejo Sand Yellow goes on next.  Leave Khaki intact in the folds for shadows.  Work in batches of 8 or more figures for efficiency.

Vallejo Oily Steel goes on all metal bits and is washed with P3 Armor wash. German Camo Black Brown goes on the back of the shields and skin.  White is liberally applied over Sand Yellow.  It’s a bit ragged but remember, gaming distance is 3 feet!

Saturated color alert! A dark base color is applied to sashes and turbans for the highlight color to pop against.  Vallejo Dark Prusia Blue is the base for Deep Sky Blue highlights, Magenta for Squid Pink highlight, and Black Red for Carmine highlights.  If you don’t have these colors, no worries, find a dark and light combo that works for you.    

The highlight color is carefully applied to the turbans and sashes, leaving the base color intact in folds for shadows.  Shields are painted with simple geometric shapes using a pallet of black, white, red and yellow.  Repeating color themes and a tight palette help give a warband visual unity.  Skin is painted last to avoid the trial that comes from getting stray paint on painted flesh.  Foundry Flesh 5A is the base, then a flesh wash, followed by Flesh 5B for a highlight.  Spears are Vallejo Iraqi Sand.

Script on the shields is a done with a Black Micron pen or a 000 paintbrush.  I tried copying Arabic script and decided squiggles work better for me.  I add grass tufts to the bases for visual interest and finish with a protective coat of spray-on Matte sealer.  

That’s it in 19 easy steps, more or less!  I still need to paint a linen banner, a troubadour and the mounted Hearthguard to finish the warband.  These Footsore Mutts are my second Mutt warband.  My first (below) was painted in all black, which is another option you might consider. When you paint your Footsore warband, remember, it’s your lead and your brush.  Have fun bringing your vision to life!  

Mutatawwi'a for SAGA

...and perhaps my warband for the US Grand Melee next year?  We'll soon see! This was an impromptu project that started when we came up a bit short with Arab warbands in our Crescent and Cross campaign.  My friend John gave me a good deal on his unpainted Artizan Design Moors and that was all it took.  If you're considering Dark Age Arabs, have a look at Artizan's line as these are superb.

I used Artizan's Black Guard for my fanatics on foot and the Hasham Guard for my mounted.  In my version of the Mutts, only the hearthguard (fanatics) take the black.  This way, you can quickly pick out my hearthguard in a game. I used bluish grays for cold highlights over black.  I also worked up a couple of linen banners.  While linen is pain to paint,  I do like the textured look of it, frayed and all.

It was a bit tricky to find warriors on camels and I eventually went with Gripping Beast models. Camels are a powerful option in this faction as they cause horse mounted enemies to lose half their dice in melee. Camels can go into uneven terrain and not get fatigued like other mounted. Clever fellows, the camels!  The Mutts can add a Hero of the Crusades, Abdullah ibn Yassin for a point.  He generates 2 SAGA dice, and adds dice each time you sacrifice a model from your warband.  I tried him a couple times and decided he's a keeper.  I painted up mounted and foot versions of both the priest and the warlord. Choices are what make SAGA fun!

I'm happy with how the cow hide shields turned out on these Artizans.

Gripping Beast warriors archers finish out the warband. Even though I'm not a fan of archers in this faction, I think there might be a place for them with a different style of play.

I got a bit carried away painting this bunch as I never settled on a single build.  In the end, I'm pleased with how my first Arabs turned out. The Mutts are a bit tricky to run and I proved it by losing my first 5 games with them. Since then, I've notched 5 consecutive victories. In a melee-centric game, the Mutts can be quite powerful once you get the hang of them. If the Vikings are your current favorites in SAGA, you'll love running the Mutts!