Mordheim Witch Hunters - a hobby project

Having limited hobby time, progress is slow and I think it is valuable to make the most out of it.

With this post I want to share my hobby journey to plan, assemble and paint my Witch Hunters Mordheim warband.

Painting walls and fences: back to basics

 "Sticks and stones may break my bones (but also protect my home, if properly assembled)".

It’s been a while since I’ve uploaded something; even more since I've painted some sceneries. Family and work have absorbed me a lot in the last two years. However, I have recently managed to carve out some time on Friday nights to get back to painting and modelling. 

As an athlete who has been away from sport for a long time, I decided to start again with something simple. These walls and fences were lying forgotten in a box and I decided to give them a well deserved dignity.

I came up to this result after a couple of relaxing hours. They're now ready to provide decent cover during battles (or, in the worst case, to be forgotten again, but with a good looking paintjob on them).

Gilles de Gillesville - Mordheim Questing Knight

Ciao!

This is my entry for #SeptemBret2021 contest on Mordheim Italia Facebook Group.

I managed to get 2nd place for best background story and 2nd place for best painting - "Newcomers" category. 1st place in the category was awarded to Armand de Chamillon, herald of Cups, another entry from an author of this blog 👍.

The winners in the "Champions" category were just another league, I strongly recommend to check all entries out on the Facebook group and on Instagram! 

A cynical wargamer at Pollenzo MMXXI

Ciao! 

As mentioned in a previous post I brought my "Band of Brothers" Reikland Mercenaries warband to the "Warlords of the City" Mordheim Pollenzo MMXXI narrative event. 

In this post I will tell about this amazing event from my perspective, for overall event coverage please refer to the organizers' social media channels. I encourage you to check out tables, warbands and the whole background story of the event.

So I have my warband built and painted and my background story written, I am ready to go! I packed my stuff and hit the road!

 

Pollenzo is a frazione (parish) of Bra in the Province of Cuneo, a Piedmont, northern Italy counting 748 inhabitants. For some unknown reasons it is home of one of the most enthusiast and hardcore Mordheim community in Italy!

Pollenzo is actually interesting beyond Mordhiem as it is a ancient Roman archaeological site (!), you can easily find more info about on the internet (Wikipedia and the such) which I will not copy paste here. Before the event I had a walk around and took some pictures.

I also did join the first 2020 event and I was impressed and amazed by the huge quality step up they were able to achieve with respect to the quality of the tables. Also, in 2020 there were 10 participants (4 from the local club and 6 external guests), in 2021 there were 20 participants all external guests.

Game 1

In the first game I am facing a Marienburg Mercenaries warband painted with the red and green Hocland scheme and interesting use of Black Fortress models. Fully kitted heroes with dueling pistols, archers, swordsmen and the classic Elf Ranger and Ogre Bodyguard. My list is actually fairly similar, just cheaper equipment but better BS. As hired swords I opted Halfling Scout and Dwarf Troll Slayer.    

The Scenario is Wyrdstone Hunt with 3 shards placed by the organizers.

 

 

I carefully place my marksmen to get good table coverage and push the Youngbloods to get the shards. My opponent gets to the high ground with the Elf and his marksmen. I am a little more reckless but I am partially saved by the average BS of the enemy archers. Still, only one out of two Youngbloods is able to get back with some wyrdstone, the other is killed in the attempt.

The game is stalling but he has an Ogre pushing on the left so I decide to force the issue with the blunderbuss moving it forward to claim the third shard next to the fountain.

He somehow manages to survive the hail of arrows and finally discharges his weapon on 3 enemy warriors, including the Captain! An archer goes OOA and the leader is knocked down. He is now out in the wind, blunderbuss unloaded so he pulls out his two daggers and gets ready to fight.

The other Champion maneuvers to flank the Ogre but he is charged in an alley by an ambitious Youngblood who mercilessly guts him.

At this point we are both testing for Rout but nobody wants to give it up! So the Blunderbuss markseman charges into the other Youngblood defeating him only to be then butchered by the backup swordsman and recovered Captain who picks up the wyrdstone shard for himself.

 

On the left flank the Slayer and the Champion bravely confront the Ogre-swordsman-Younglblood trio. The Dwarf meets his doom by the hand of the Ogre but the Champion is able to put OOA both the swordsman and the Youngblood before being finally crushed by the Ogre.

At this point I voluntarily rout leaving the Marienburgers standing victorious.

In the end damages are limited, I have to recruit a new Youngblood and hire a new halfling but I am still able to purchase a new marskman with longbow and purchase a longbow for the marksman with blunderbuss.

Game 2

In the second game I am facing the Cult of the Possessed in the Chance Encounter scenario. The table we are playing on is an amazing scratch built masterpiece. Unfortunately it turns out to be quite challenging for the low models count close combat oriented Chaos worshippers and the game ends turn two with an unlucky failed rout test.

We both make good loot and level up our henchmen. I actually roll a "the lad's got talent" and a crossbowmen becomes a trigger happy hero. I am also able to hire an Ogre and buy a couple lucky charms.

Game 3

The final game is the classic Skirmish scenario but limited to 5 turns and without Rout Test. I am facing the virtuous knights of Bretonnia. As much as I love the Bretonnians (I am working on a warband myself) I have to admit they are not very performing... Anyways myself and my opponent are not top tier and at this point we are playing for the glory.

I do not have pictures as we were running late, we actually had to end the game at turn 4 and weather through a rain of meteors sent from the friends of the Facebook group 😅 

My warband has higher rating and the Ogre alone is able to power through several opponents.

Conclusions

All in all a great day! 3 games under the belt played on beautiful tables against awesome opponents: true gentlemen, passionate hobbists and sportsmen. The overall organization was just perfect and such a nice opportunity to meet in person many fellow Mordheimers.

I go home happy as a little boy on Christmas Day with a box of candies, a bottle of red wine and a custom dice 😊

 

Band of Brothers Mordheim Warband

 

Ciao!

I want to share the "Band of Brothers" Reikland warband I have been working on for a while and which I am planning to play on October 3rd 2021 at the "Warlords of the City" Mordheim Narrative Event in Pollenzo.

As required by the organizers I also wrote some background story for my brave mercenaries, hope you like it!

Concealing the discomfort coming from the injuries to the left arm and the forehead, the officer walked into the office of General Roald Sulzberger and stood to attention.

"Captain Hoffman report to Sir General." he spoke in a firm voice. The general slowly raised his gaze from the papers that cluttered his desk, stared at his subordinate with arrogance, and then, slumping noisily into his chair said:

“Captain welcome, better late than never… I'm really curious to know what happened. I hope you realize that due to your delay, my girls were unable to attend the prom. The fact is really unfortunate since they cared so much. They couldn't wait to wear the new dresses I had given them!"

Rutger Hoffman stiffened his jaw but managed to stay calm.

"Sir, according to the orders received, the Company was on time at the rendez-vous with the ferry to escort Miss Sulzbergers during the last leg of their journey to the Capital. Unloading operations took much longer than expected. The quantity and the size of the luggage exceeded any reasonable expectation. It also took the ladies a few hours to freshen up and choose what clothes to wear for the trip."

The General listened absently, cleaning his fingernails with a letter opener.

"The march then proceeded slowly, punctuated by countless breaks including snacks, refreshments, card games and even a game of badminton!"

Hoffman continued.

“When we arrived in Kleindorf we were greeted with enthusiasm by the population. They thought we were the backup they had sent for. The village had been under attack by bands of Beastmen for days, and they had sent several relays for help. Needless to say, no messenger made it out of the woods around the village alive and we weren't their reinforcements. At that moment I made the decision to defend the village, without our help they would have had no escape. We fought for three days and three nights and finally managed to disperse the attackers. In this regard, I would like to point out some soldiers who have distinguished themselves in a part-"

The captain's report was abruptly interrupted by the general who, red with anger, had sprung to his feet and, banging his fat ringed hand on the desk with fury, began to yell at Hoffman:

“Captain, shut up, I've had enough! You have disobeyed specific orders and endangered the lives of my daughters who I was told they also had to take care of the wounded! I don't even want to think what horrors you exposed my little girls to!"

As Sulzerberg gasped, the Captain replied:

“Sir, the whims of your spoiled offspring had by now delayed us by more than half a day on the schedule. Continuing further, the darkness would have surprised us in the forest with far worse results. In addition, the lives of over a hundred families, including elderly and children, depended solely on us. I made the only decision I could have."

“And so you are guilty of treason and sedition! Captain, you are a deserter and an insolent! You are under arrest and suspended from command with immediate effect!”.

A heavy silence fell into the small room. Hoffman had realized he had passed the mark but could no longer bear the nonsense of his superiors, particularly that slimy and corrupt parasite of Sulzerberg. The general had not dismissed him and therefore he stood at attention waiting.
Sulzerberg, for his part, had recovered from the fit of anger and was now sitting thoughtfully rubbing his temples. Then he let out a grunt of satisfaction and, glaring at the captain, said to him:

“Captain, I could have you and your men executed today. And Sigmar knows how much I would like ... On the other hand, I cannot deny your qualities as a fighter and commander. By virtue of the latter, I want to offer you a way out. Collect what's left of your Company and go to Mordheim. Bring me a cart full of wyrdstone and you will be forgiven... And now get out of here, by tomorrow at dawn you have to be on the move!"

Captain Hoffman saluted and took the door.
Lieutenant Schott and Sergeant Major Lemberger met him as soon as they saw him.

“Gentlemen, recover the men who are still capable of fighting and let's get ready to leave. Schott, I saw that a Halfling Scout and a Dwarf Slayer are bivouacking by those campfires, ask them if they are interested in joining us for a fair pay. Let's go to Mordheim..."

Armand de Chamillon, herald of Cups

The Mordheim Italia Facebook page issued another contest and this time I had to participate! The theme was Bretonnia so with the help of my brother I found an old knight and decided to put some paint on it.

You can go and search for #SeptemBret2021 to see all entries!

Lionel stopped under the portal, distracted by a distant, barely audible sound. While his zombies continued in pursuit of the last Tileans of Kemperbad, who had come to seek fortune and death in the city of the Damned, the necromancer retraced his steps, leaning on the parapet that overlooked market square, as if he wanted to find that noise with his gaze. When it finally found the young man's ears, the sound had become more distinct: Lionel recognized the hunting horns that had besieged his master's tower and decided to gather the band to leave that palace as soon as possible. Climbing over the bodies of the Tileans, he ran up the stairs to the main floor, dimly lit by a waning moon that could be seen from the gutted walls. In the center of the hall, a thin figure was drinking from the jugular of an unfortunate halberdier. 

"Genoveffa, the Hunters are approaching, we must go". 

The vampire dropped the body to the ground, getting closer to Lionel. Her long black hair swayed in the dark, as if weightless. 

"My young friend, you are as well versed in the dark arts as you are unfamiliar with the traditions of our old world. Can't you distinguish the sound of a Bretonnian trumpet?"

At that moment the sound returned, carried by the night breeze, as closer and clearer. It was a sweet and ringing call, evocative of noble deeds and lofty ideals, yet veiled by a shadow of sadness, as of melancholy for a golden age now past. 

"What you hear is the trumpet of Armand de Chamillon, a Bretonnian knight. His sire sent him to Mordheim in search of his eldest daughter, with whom the young man was secretly in love. Since then, he has traveled the length and breadth of the city trying to recall her with the sound of his trumpet ". 

Lionel grimaced, annoyed at his mistake but visibly captured by the tale. He strained his ears to hear the sound of Armand's trumpet once more as he trotted away among the rubble buildings. 

"Human tragedies are bizarre, I am very intrigued. I wonder if his is a vain hope or if he will ever be able to reunite with that girl and bring her back to her land".

"I doubt it" replied the vampire "I don't want to go home".

I also toyed with the idea of making it possible to see this character in action so I wrote, but didn't test, the rules for his Dramatis Personae profile.

Mordheim Italia Facebook page #januhunters2021 contest entry

 Ciao!

The Mordheim Italia Facebook page issued a little nice hobby contest which I was happy to participate to. 

Rules were simple: post a picture of a model from the Witch Hunters range (witch hunter, warrior-priest, flagellant, zealot or warhound) together with some character story or background. The community then shall vote the one they like the most. You can go and search for #januhunters2021 to see all entries!

I do not own a Witch Hunters warband (yet), but I had a 6th ed warrior-priest craving for a new paintjob (and a round base, Sigmar forgive me!) so I threw him in the stripping pot of doom and got at it.

Here the final result.

  Let me now introduce you Father Innozenz and his story...

A hooded figure crept silently into the forge illuminated by Morrslieb's sinister light filtering through the skylight. The large bronze bell had been out of the mold for just a few hours and was still emanating heat. The cultist approached the bell and intoning a blasphemous chant sprinkled it with a few pinches of a fluorescent powder from a velvet pouch he took from the depths of his robe ...

Innozenz hurried down the stairs that led from the scriptorium to the courtyard. His brothers were already all gathered to attend the ceremony of consecration and inauguration of the new bell. As a result of complications from ear infection as a child, he was deaf in both ears and his family, wealthy beer merchants from Pfieldorf, had initiated him into monastic life. Innozenz had thus become a skilled amanuensis and an honest prelate living a peaceful and quiet life within the monastery walls.

Not being able to hear the sound of the new bell forged in the renowned foundries of Nuln, which would have brought prestige and importance to the monastery, deeply saddened him but he was still happy to be able to participate to this event and experience the emotion of this moment through the enthusiasm of his brothers.

After the Abbot's speech, the long-awaited moment finally came. The bell monk made the Sign of the Hammer and pulled the rope that operated the bell. Innozenz heard nothing but remained hypnotized by the rhythmic swinging of the bell. When he had counted seven strokes he came to his senses and was shocked by the scene before his eyes.

The bodies of his brethren were monstrously deformed: huge swollen bellies pierced with broken bones, worm-infested mouths and ears oozing purulent humors, eyes in unnatural numbers and positions turning to him with a disgusting expression of violence and commiseration.

In a moment the amanuensis realized that he was facing the manifestation of one of the purest essences of Chaos.

As the crowd of corrupt monks surrounded him, he knelt down and gathered his whole soul in a last and desperate prayer: "Sigmar give me the strength to save my brothers and defeat your enemies.”

Sigmar listened to him.

A golden aura enveloped him, his faith became armor and his fury became hammer. Transfigured by the spirit of Sigmar, he threw himself into the ranks of the possessed, sending them back to the hell from which they had come with holy hammer blows. Sigmar was with him and he was unstoppable.

With a prodigious leap he found himself on the ledge at the top of the bell tower where a cloud of flies and unclean beings swarmed around the cursed bell. Wicked tentacles protruded from the inside while disgusting ooze exuded from the bell that was transmuting from bronze into decaying organic matter, tingling with larvae and worms.

Innozenz raised his arms and struck a mighty blow against that demonic instrument. There was a flash of light and then everything went dark...

He woke up a few days later, lying on the grass in the clearing in front of the monastery. There was no one around and apart from the ruins of the tower, nothing testified to the terrible battle that had taken place. There was something else strange... he heard! He could hear the rustle of the wind in the trees and the warble of birds.

Then he heard a very deep voice, like a thunder that frightens enemies but comforts those who have faith: “Innozenz you are a faithful and courageous servant. I give you back the hearing that the disease had deprived you of. Go to Mordheim, lend your ear to the pleas of the desperate and mercilessly strike the wicked and the corrupt!”. 

Innozenz staggered to his feet, made the Sign of the Hammer, and rising a song of praise set off for the City of the Damned. Along the way many called him but he went straight on his way, he did not hear them, he had been deaf since he was a child...

Inglorious Wolves - Mordheim Middenheim Mercenaries

Ciao,

this is a post I have been wanting to make for quite some time but managed to get at it only now.

Let me present you the Inglorious Wolves, a Middenheim Mercenaries warband I built and painted specifically for the one day Mordheim Pollenzo MMXX amazing event organized by VIII Legio.

This was the perfect motivation to make some good use of an Empire Militia box and some Middenheim bits which had been collecting dust for too long.

Here below a group picture including some hired swords.

Background (the fluff)

The camp was dimly lit by the embers of the dying fire, the silence disturbed by the rhythmic scraping of the whetstone on a blade.

Upon hearing the sound of footsteps, the man, who was busy sharpening an old halberd, raised an eyebrow then pulled a puff of smoke from his pipe and said: "Rich boy, can't you sleep?".

"No." Leonard answered, ignoring the provocation. He sat down next to the old soldier and let some time pass without saying anything, staring at the moon over the City of the Damned.

"Tell me about the Captain, I need to know more about who will lead us in the ruins."

Without haste, after another puff of his pipe, Juergen spoke: “A year ago a woman came to the estate, a beautiful and charming woman with whom the Captain fell madly in love. She was a cursed witch and a servant of the dark gods. She wanted to assassinate the Elector Count by taking advantage of my Lord's position. We managed to stop her plan but she escaped us and killed the Captain's son in revenge. Since then he has been chasing her restlessly. He looks for her to prevent her from doing any more harm but above all he looks for her to find her before the Witch Hunters do. He wants to be the one to execute her. But fear not, the Captain is the best commander that we could have for this trip to hell, obey his orders and you could even go home alive. Do you feel calmer now? "

Once again Leonard ignored the veteran's taunt and asked again: "What about the others?"

After having emptied the bowl of the pipe and cleaned it carefully, Juergen put it away in a worn case, then resumed speaking: “Dieter has fought alongside the Captain in countless battles. Don't be fooled by his white beard, he is the most skilled and brave man I have ever seen fight. He seeks the witch too.

Hugo and John are two ruffians, the only things they care about are fame, women and booty but they fight like furies and want to make a name for themselves."

A dark howl echoed in the darkness making Leonard shiver and instinctively brought his hand towards the axe handle. 

Juergen grinned in amusement, his hoarse laughter quickly turned into a catarrh cough then he cursed and said, “Don't fret greenhorn, this is our wolf friend telling us that everything is fine. Luckily he's out there too watching our backs, he has already saved us big troubles more than once ... The priest is called Bjorn, he appeared out of nowhere one morning and without saying a word he joined us, the wolf joined him shortly after. Every now and then he has fits, his eyes roll and he shivers all over. He says that Ulric sends him visions. Once I asked him to teach me to pray and he told me to let it go, Ulric doesn't listen.

Peter is my sister's son, he buried his father at the end of the winter and there was not enough food for everyone at home. What about you, rich boy? What mess did you cook to make your father send you to Mordheim?"

Leonard thought of Greta's raven hair and green eyes, her soft, fair skin and her sweet voice. Both he and she were far from the line of succession and there was never any talk of marriage. At the age of sixteen, Greta joined the Sigmarite Sisters and he joined the army. When he learned about the comet and what had happened in Mordheim he immediately volunteered. He had to find Greta at all costs and bring her to safety, saving her, perhaps, he would save himself too...

He got up, brushed off the bottom of his pants and as he walked away to his bed he said, “It was not my to send me here, I'm a volunteer. I want to be free, I seek happiness. "

The boy had already walked away and could no longer hear him but Juergen continued to talk, perhaps more to himself: "Of all the places in this grim and dark world, the last one where I would come to seek freedom and happiness is precisely this cursed city." then he spat into the fire and resumed sharpening his halberd...

List (the crunch)

The list is far from being optimized but I think it has some personality and I feel quite engaged and committed to play it.

Heroes

• Gottfried von Shieffer - Mercenary Captain
• dagger, sword, brace of duelling pistols, helmet wolf cloak
•   Dieter Bode - Champion
• dagger, halberd, helmet, wolf cloak
• Leonard von Richtofen - Youngblood
• dagger, axe, hammer, bow
• Peter Obst - Youngblood
• dagger, axe, hammer, bow
• Bjorn Borg - Wolf Priest of Ulric
• dagger, 2 hammers, wolf cloak

Henchmen

• McEnroe - Wolf Companion (1)
• Hugo & John - Swordsmen (2)
• dagger, sword, buckler
• Juergen Heiniken - Warrior (1)
• dagger, halberd

    

Mordheim Skaven Warband - Henchmen

Ciao!

I finally concluded the Mordheim Skaven Warband project!
I can say I am quite happy about how they turned out, here a couple of pictures of the henchmen and of the whole Purple Claw Clan in all its might.

Ho finalmente concluso il progetto della Banda di Skaven per Mordheim!
Posso dire di essere soddisfatto dell'effetto finale, di seguito un paio di foto della truppa e dell'intero Clan in tutta la sua potenza.

Ciao!

henchmen - left to right maces, spears and shields, swords, slings

truppa - da sinistra a destra mazze, lance e scudi, spade, fionde

Clan Moulder's Contractor

Collaboratori del Clan Moulder  

Party picture

Foto di gruppo

Fantasy half timbered house - Part 2

Ciao a tutti! 

Eccomi con la seconda parte del w.i.p. dedicata alla pittura della casetta a graticcio.

Per ora ho soltanto steso i primi colori, seguiti da una veloce lavatura marrone sull'intonaco.

Seguiranno ulteriori lavature (verdi e marroni) per invecchiare ulteriormente l'edificio.

A presto.

Hi all!

Here the second part of this w.i.p. dedicated to the painting of the timbered house.

These are just the first layers of colour, with a quick brown wash on the walls.

The next steps will be different washes (green and brown) in order to add some waethering effect.

Stay tuned!

Mordheim High elves warband - Shadow warriors

Ciao!
This is the most recent warband added to my collection: Shadow warriors, Sons of Nagarythe.
The miniatures are from the GW's Shadow warriors box.
All the minis have been painted by Nekradamus (here you can see some of her works).
Now I'm working on my own on the wizard of the group; the miniature I chose is the Loremaster of Hoeth.
Enjoy the pic!