#13: Border Wars - Mustering the troops

How quickly four weeks pass! Felt like last Saturday that I painted an inexperienced Mage about to go on his first voyage. And despite my ongoing battle with capes, robes and all things flowing, I actually managed to paint a considerable amount. 

Despite the not-so-amazing lighting, you can see that I managed to get a fair bit painted. The unit of archers turned out better than I was expecting, and with only their banner to do, they are all but complete. My plan is to leave all the banners blank until the very end, so that I can pour a decent amount of time into them when pressure to paint whole units has been lifted. 

Now, those of you with good memories will notice a distinct lack of Dragon Princes in that photo. And yes, I admit, while they are nearly completed, I have not finished them. But knowing that I was nearly out of time, I put four of the Knights aside and focused on one to show you what the intended finished product will be. 

This finely dressed fellow still has some highlights to go, and of course some basing, but you get the general idea. I was actually pleasantly surprised at how much I enjoyed painting this unit. During assembly, I was dreading it, for these are among the most detailed and intricate models in the range, but they were a joy to paint. I simply did not allow myself enough time to give them the attention they deserved leading up to today. 

All in all, I am thoroughly enjoying the challenge posed by this army, both in painting and gameplay. Painting-wise, the challenge posed by the detailed models is rewarded by looking great when completed. My fledgling force is legal, and I plan to post more than a few battle reports if anyone is keen to test their own armies. 

Despite falling just short of the deadline, I was one of but a few. I have been flooded with photos in the last day and a half of participants who have gone above and beyond, displaying what a great hobby we are a part of. So without more ado, here are just a few five hundred point forces painted and modelled to the highest level!

Liam: Night Goblins

Now my first thought when I received this picture was, "How on earth did I fall short, when Liam painted this metric ton of models?" 

He's put a mammoth effort in, and it shows. A huge unit of night goblins dominates his force, complete with betters, fanatics and a truly magestic rank filler. Using the cauldron from Skragg the Slaughterer, a crazed shaman stands atop a column of rock, cheering about his latest batch of potion, doubtless containing a lethal quantity of Mad Cap Mushrooms. 

It's so easy to get rank fillers wrong, but Liam has added a huge amount of character to his army with this mini-diorama! I salute you, sir. 

Glen: Beastmen

Beastmen have the mild misfortune of having very little in the way of range, with almost half their army having no current models. So when Glen turned to his impressive abilities in converting, I knew it was going to be impressive. 

Slugtongue is an ever popular character, and Glen's interpretation of this morbid character is spot on. Resembling the artwork from the army book, he is more of a vile apparition rather than a living shaman, and he easily portrays the pestilent shaman who heralds death wherever he goes. Great blending as well. 

He also whipped together a unit of harpies, using Ungors and gargoyle wings to create a dynamic unit of the impish terrors. To be honest, my favourite thing about this unit is the bases. They are different, dynamic and the green of the foliage really pops the models. As a Beastmen player, and having attempted this conversion myself, I am wildly impressed with his work, and I look forward to seeing much more from Glen.

Alistair: Empire... Wait, no. Khorne?

Alistair redeemed my change of armies early on by switching his army three times, finally settling on Warriors of Khorne. With the recent injection of models and rules for the followers of Khorne, enthusiasm was in high supply for Al.

Embracing the murderous violence of warriors, and bypassing the magic phase entirely, Al has focused on making a true mono-Khorne army. His first installment includes twelve warriors with extra hand weapons (all the better for hacking and slashing), ten hounds using the Fenrisian Wolves (not pictured) and an Exalted Hero atop a hulking Juggernaught. 

He has poured a lot of time into the basing of his models, but the most striking highlight of this army is the white armour, veering away from the typical red seen on most Khorne-themed models. 

Josh: Legions of Chaos

With Festus drawing more and more followers to his cause, he is joined by a unit of ironclad warriors and a rumbling chariot in the same striking green as the rest of his already massive army of Chaos. Not one to rest on his laurels, however, he has already kicked in to his next five hundred points and I can't wait to see the finished product. 

Davey: Wood Elves

Davey was a late comer to the party, but has quickly hit speed with the rest of the pack. 

Davey's wood elves are themed strongly around American-Indian culture and his painting does this army true justice, from the subtle contrasts of colour to the faultless blending. 

Painting two characters, Davey has chosen a Spellsinger, who is adorned with elaborate tattoos, braids and warlike facepaint, and a noble on a giant eagle, being represented by a spiteful dryad-prince. Davey has also written a fantastic fluff piece about his army, that I'll share at the earliest opportunity. 

Ryan Z: Legions of Chaos

Last installment, Ryan put forward a truly great model in Gutrot Spume, forcing his way into the role of arch-rival for my Elven fleet. Continuing the theme, he has completed an appropriate bodyguard for Spume. 

Of all the models released in the last year, the Blight Kings are amongst my favourites. These Nurgle champions are awesome and their kit has so many options available in it. Where Al has chosen Khorne as his sole faction, Ryan has decidedly chosen Nurgle. 

Matthew G: Ogre Kingdoms

Originally entering the fray at the head of the Wood Elves, Matt joins the ranks of us who changed our minds. 

Where most army colour schemes are tied together with uniforms, this Ogre army is instead tied together with the skin tones, adding pops of different colours with their varied pants in vibrant tones. 

Wasting no time with his change of heart, Matt has quickly produced five hundred points of high quality painting and hardened muscle. Bringing to life a personal nemesis unit of mine, he's lavished attention upon three trigger happy brutes, hauling around their salvaged cannons packed full of scrap metal. 

To round out his force, Matt has chosen a Butcher, adding some magical strength to the warband. Butchers seem to be less common these days, taking the back seat to Firebellies, but they still pose a significant force in the magic phase and in combat. 

I still have several participants to display, and look forward to showing their work. 

As always, thanks for reading. 

Gabriel