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.

Which way the lead mountain?

After a decades long layoff, I came back to miniatures as a father-son project.  My son wanted to play Warhammer Fantasy so I bought unpainted collections at Bartertown. In short order, I had a plastic mountain of Orcs & Goblins, Dwarfs, and Tomb Kings.  Being new at this, my son and I were very slow painters. That plus assembling the figures meant it took us many sessions to finish a single unit.  And there were so damned many GW boxes! What was I thinking, buying 3 armies at once?  Every time I got a peek at the plastic mountain, my enthusiasm for painting sunk.  When my son moved onto the world of music, I was left to finish the lot myself.

I did eventually finish at a rate of an army a year but the experience left a mark.  When I quit fantasy for historicals, I decided to avoid this mistake.  I use an accountant's precision to plot my purchases.  I keep a first in, first out (FIFO) painting system. Before I start a new project, I finish the old one.  With this push, my collection of unpainted 28mm minis is down to 6 figures.

These fellows fill some  gaps in my Viking and Anglo-Danish warbands for Saga.  I used triads with the cloaks but I toned down my color jumps and washed to flatten them out for a more gradual transition.

The slingers add an important shooty element to the Anglo-Danish warband. Being levy, they're quite dull to look at.  

Running out of things to paint, I also finished some Saga color items including aditional fatigue counters. 

With my Just in time inventory system maxed, I'm back to sifting through unpainted lead at Bartertown and browsing Architectsofwar.  I've got my eye on more Dark Age figures.  It can't hurt to keep a lead molehill, can it?

Norse go South

The Varangian Guard were elite Norse mercenaries who served the Byzantine empire from the 9th through 14th centuries. To get an idea of how important they were, consider the spoils of war.  After a victory, the Byzantine Emperor took 1/3 of the booty, the Varangians took 1/3 and the rest of the army divided the balance. The Varangians were also the first to plunder a city and upon the death of the emperor, the
privilege of plundering the palace.

Much like Napoleon's Old Guard, the Varangian Guard were committed to battle at critical moments where the action was most fierce. Chroniclers described them as "fighting like madmen, as if ablaze with wrath,"  "frightening both in appearance and in equipment, they attacked with reckless rage and neither cared about losing blood nor their wounds." During the Battle of Beroe, Byzantine troops tried but couldn't break a  Pecheneg wagon laager (fort).  Byzantine officers cried for the "Emperor's wineskins" and up came the Varangians.  Heavily outnumbered, they broke through the circle and slaughtered the enemy. 

These are all Gripping Beast figs.  The hafts on their 2-handed axes were reportedly 5' long, so I trimmed the axes to keep them at or under the height of the figures.  

In Saga, the Byzantines can take Harald Hardrada as a hero & Captain of the Varangian Guard.  Part way into the project, my customer asked to add a Harald, plus 4 Viking Hearthguard for his Viking warband.  I modded a Hereward the Wake figure by cutting the sword out of his right hand and drilling out his left.  In it, I put a clipped spear in and added an axehead. Bingo, the Captain of the Varangian Guard with a a few Vikings running amok. The Viking basing was done to match an existing Viking warband.  

I recently switched to Krylon Matt Finish for sealcoating. It dries with a satin finish that looks brighter in the photography lights than natural lighting.  I'm not sure why the matt finish is coming up satin but I knocked it down with Army Painter Matt varnish after the photos.

Rally 'round the Raven - Saga AAR

Hugh and I got to set up a Viking vs. Welsh smackdown.  The Viking way in Saga is to go for the jugular whereas the Welsh are shooty, hit-and-run bunch.

I knew I'd have difficulty in this match-up so I decided to try out a new tactic.  In the Raven's Shadow supplement, Saga introduced "Rally Round the Banner."  You can add a War Banner to any one unit.  The banner allows the unit to rest other than the first activation and remove a fatigue.  It's a double-edged sword.   You'll need to use an activation ability or die for the rest.  Activating multiple times in a turn means that unit will use up your Saga dice and find itself alone in the face of the enemy. Also, the banner figure does not generate attack dice.

My Viking warband was Warlord plus 1 unit Hearthguard -12 figs with a War Banner, 3 units of Warriors with 8 figs each.  The risk is that the first time Hugh kills a unit, I'll be down a Saga dice.  It's a quick strike force with a Mike Tyson punch in the form of the hearthguard with the banner.  If my right hook doesn't drop the Welsh quickly, I'll die in a hail of javelins.  Hugh's Welsh warband was Warlord plus 1 unit of Levy -12 figures, 1 unit of Hearthguard-8 figs each, 3 units of Warriors-8 figs each.

GAME 1:  "Clash of Warlords." I won terrain initiative and dropped a hill in the middle of the board. Hugh tried but couldn't get his 2 woods on the table and that spelled trouble for the Welsh.  I've never played a game of Saga with so little terrain.  Could the hand of Odin have been at work?

My warriors screened the hearthguard from javelin fire.  The Welsh javelins were deadly in the early game and I could see I wouldn't have the luxury of waiting for everyone to line up "just so" before going in.

Hugh was forming the dreaded fishhook formation and he intended to bait his hook with my Vikings!

I split my Saga dice between activating the hearthguard 3 times (plus a free activation with "We Obey") and the abilities Thor (melee 2x in a turn) and Ulllr (reroll attack dice that miss).  With this combo, my hearthguard wiped out a unit of Welsh warriors, rested, and in the next activation, wiped out a unit of Welsh hearthguard.

My 6 surviving hearthguard descended on the Welsh warlord.  6 on 1 is not a fair fight and the brave Welsh warlord went down fighting.  A quick victory to the Vikings...skol, Vikings!

GAME 2:  "Clash of Warlords" again with the same warbands.  This time, Odin was off cavorting and the Welsh dropped 2 woods in the middle of the table.  I asked Hugh if he was creating a Dark Age Agincourt. All we needed was a muddy field in the center and a charge.  Being the Vikings, I had no choice but to go up the gut and deliver.

Hugh's dicing was better in this game.  He played "The Rising Out" to activate 4 units to pitch javelins.  My warband was melting in the face of sustained missile fire and I had to go all in with my hearthguard.  I needed to chew through the Welsh hearthguard to open a path to their warlord. When my 12 hearthguard hit Hugh's 8 hearthguard, there was a tremendous crash that ended with his men wiped out and nearly all of mine!  I couldn't deliver the killer punch and was left to look about the battlefield for any chance to pull my coals from the fire!

Desperate, I sent my warlord after his.  I bumbled and pushed his warriors back to within Very Short distance of his warlord.  This allowed his warriors to sacrifice themselves and soak up hits that my warlord delivered on his warlord. My Viking warlord went down in personal combat and the game went to the Welsh.

There is some debate on the Saga forums about the usefulness of "Rally Round the Banner."  After two tries, I'd say it's moderately risky with a moderate opportunity for payout.  If you go for the kill and fail, you've probably lost the game.  Still, I think it's useful tool for the Vikings.

All in all, a great day of gaming and a good showing by the Welsh.

Viking Berserkers, long hafts and all

When I popped these Gripping Beast  Berserkers out of the box, I noticed the axe hafts were very long, with one axe being taller than the figure.  It didn't look right to my eyes so I considered clipping the hafts down.

Fortunately, I didn't do that because the Bayeux tapestry clearly shows axe hafts nearly as long as the axemen.  Plus, there's a theory that a longer haft was reflected social status or ranking.  It will surprise no one that men have been worrying who's longer since at least the Dark Ages!

"A guy on the internet says I can make this longer."

Hurstwic is a wonderful website loaded with background information on all things Viking, including the use of axes in battle.  As it turns out, a long axe was useful for:

• hooking an opponent's ankle, throwing him off balance.
• hooking the shoulder or neck to pull an opponent out of position.
• hooking the edge of a shield, pulling it away from the defender.

The haft can be used to parry and strike, much like a fighting staff. The video HERE shows how an axe-armed Viking might have fought and defeated his sword & shield armed foe.  It's fascinating to watch and once again, shows my imagination is limited by my modern experiences. And here is a YouTube video of a History channel demo of the Danish axe worth a watch as well!

I tried to share my new-found knowledge with my family at the dinner table.  When I asked if anyone knew how to use a two-handed axe, my son replied "With two hands?"   That was pretty much the end of Professor dad's history lecture for the evening.

These Gripping Beasties come with LOADS of character.  I bent the arms on the fellow in the grey wolf cloak so he could wield a 2-handed axe like his mates.  I spent extra time making these shine since they are the killer unit in any Viking warband.  Throwing 4 dice per figure (rather than 2) in melee makes you belle of the ball in a Dark Ages mashup.

I'm loving the Foundry skin triads and mulling over investing in a full set of Foundry paints.  Their system takes the guesswork out of color jumps for 2-tone and triad painting.  I just have to figure out the paint pot versus dropper bottle angle. And the price. It always comes down to money, doesn't it?

Next week, it's back to the Welsh with a post-up of the warriors.  If you look closely,you'll find the Welsh warriors in this picture.  Waaay, way in the back. Farther.  Keep looking...yea, those guys!

Viking Warlord Egil Skallagrimsson

By any measure, Egil Skallagrimsson was a badass.  Really, I hear you ask, how bad was he?  According to Egil's Saga, Egil was playing with a some of other kids when an older boy threw him to the ground. The  kids laughed and Egil got pissed.  He went home, grabbed an ax and used it to split the boy's skull to the teeth.  The two households came to blows and seven men were killed. Egil's father was unhappy but his mother thought he had the makings of a real Viking. He was 7 at the time! Egil was a boy you did NOT invite over for birthday parties, playdates or sleepovers.    

The detailing on this Gripping Beast figure was superb.  At times, I was guessing at what I was painting. Hopefully, it's not obvious!

Once again, bark found its way into another project!  I'm very pleased with how my warlord turned out.

The positive painting mojo carried over from the workbench to the gaming table in my first game of Saga.  We played A Feast for Crows with a Viking -Viking - Anglo-Danish mashup.  I had Egil up front because I didn't know better and half way through, my warlord went in side by side with my berserkers.  They cut the opposing Viking warlord to pieces.  Late in the game, the Anglo-Danish set on Egil with 6 Hearthguard armed with the deadly Dane axe.  To demonstrate the long odds against me, our host dropped 2 headstones on the tabletop before I threw my dice.  One for Egil and one for his last Hird. Egil smote 4 of the Danes and the survivors fell back in fear.  

My Viking opponent sent his last warriors at Egil.  Insults were thrown. parentage was questioned and finally, dice were thrown.  When it was over, every Viking warrior was dead, as was my warlord.  With his dying breath, Egil was heard to whisper, "We won on on points!" Epic and hilarious!  The Saga fire is lit and now onto my Norman warband.  

Gravestones at the ready.  

Looks like you'll be needing two more headstones, fellas!

A dip with Viking archers

There's some debate among Saga players on whether levy archers are a wise choice for the Viking warband.    I figure they can screen my lads as they madly rush crossbow, javelin or archer-armed foe. Even if I don't use levy archers regularly with this warband, just having them painted up gives me the chance to mix things up a bit.

My go-to method in 15mm is to block paint, wash with Devlon Mud and highlight to finish.  Sadly, I've used up all my Mud.  Agrax Earthshade is supposed to be the new Devlan Mud but it isn't.  I recently tried mixing up my own washes but I can't quite match the color/shading of Devlon Mud. I've seen the great work many of you do with Army Painter Strong Tone dip so I figured I'd give it a go.

Boring!  

$29 for a tin-is there a genie or leprechaun at the bottom?  

Having done this all of one time, I've declared myself something of an expert on the subject.  Here are my thoughts.

What works? Great coverage, good shading, very good consistency in that it sticks to the figure well without all running down to the base like my Future mixes do.  AP puts a protective coat over your painting, which is especially handy with skirmish figures.  The shading is quite nice once it cures.  

What doesn't?  Good lord it stinks!  I can't dip with an open window because its winter.  This is a challenge for anyone who lives as far north of the equator as the Vikings once did.  When I dip, I have to do it quickly and then shut the door to my painting room.   Also, I have to keep mineral spirits on my painting table to clean my dipping brush and to be honest, I'd much rather work with water-based products for the easy clean up and no smell.  

Gripping Beast figs dipped and highlighted.  Once again, I kept a limited Dark Age palette.  I'm pleased with the results but I'll go a bit lighter on some of my base colors the next time.

Up next  is my Viking warlord  pictured in his Saga below.  If you can name the man in the floppy black hat, I'll spot you +20 Viking history points.  Well, anyone other than Michael of the excellent Dalauppror blog as he'll know this on sight.  Sorry, Michael!

Viking poet, warrior, farmer...and stone cold killer.