I've been hard at work getting my Warhammer army together for the launch of the Slow Grow League, and just finished putting together my first 500 points tonight. I also got started on my display board and center-piece, all of which need to be painted by the end of the first month of the league.
As I was assembling my first few models I started thinking about the back story for my army. I decided early on that I would make a Marienburg themed army since I used to play them in Mordheim, only to find out that Marienburg is no longer part of the Empire during the time of Warhammer. Rather than change concept I decided to jump in with both feet.
I did more research into Marienburg, learning about their culture, religion, colors, natives, and relation to real world cities. The inspiration I got from my research gave me a whole bunch of ideas:
First, since they are not part of the Empire and ruled by a council of merchants I decided not to use any Knights. In fact, I went a step further and decided that as a sea-faring folk I wouldn't use any cavalry at all, at least until I got into higher point levels.
Second, I'm going to style the army to evoke an attitude of arrogance and wealth, which will be accomplished mainly through the models I use to represent the army's Heroes.
Third, I'm going to focus on the Lore of Metal for my wizards, and give them an appearance of extreme wealth, including creepy gold face masks.
Finally, I'm going to mix in elements of other races that make up Marienburg, especially as I reach higher point values. For example, I'm going to kit bash together a box of Empire Free Company with a box of Wood Elf Glade Guard to make a very unique unit of Sea Elf Huntsmen. I haven't decided how yet, but I am also thinking of ways to incorporate some Ogre servants into the army, perhaps in place of horses for a wagon or chariot.
Great start! Here's how you add in ogres to your army:
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You now have some really solid unit fillers which count as 4 infantry men. They're a great way to add some flavor to the army and a really excellent way to break up the monotony of painting humans! There's a few other maneaters and you could certainly convert your own but I thought these would probably fit best and be a good starting point.
"Unit fillers", eh? I hadn't thought of that, that's a great idea. I think I'll be picking up the Pirate maneater in the near future.
DeleteAnother Pro for Warhammer Fantasy. You don't need to collect every individual model in the army. Use unit fillers for great effect, they add color/flavor and look great on the table.
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