Wednesday, August 29, 2012

New Release - Warhammer 40,000 Dark Vengeance, Coming Soon


Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set
There's been a lot of talk about the coming release of the Warhammer 40,000 Dark Vengeance box set. If you ordered it by today (Wednesday) it'll ship on Friday! So let's see what you get?

To start you get two astonishingly detailed armies - Dark Angels and the Chaos Space Marines of the Crimson Slaughter. 48 miniatures in all, 49 if you are lucky enough to get the limited edition box set. All of the models are snap-fit plastic, so glue is optional.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set
As if the models weren't enough, Dark Vengeance comes with:

  • A 168-page full-color mini Warhammer 40,000 Rulebook
  • A complete Assembly Guide
  • A quick-play reference guide 
  • An army roster sheet
  • Dice and Templates
  • A how-to-play booklet including six scenarios to enact on the tabletop.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Chaplain Seraphicus
The limited edition includes an exclusive Dark Angels model, Interrogator-Chaplain Seraphicus, a full-color double-sided reference sheet and assembly guide.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Company Master
The Dark Vengeance box set contains enough miniatures to start a Dark Angels army, including a Company Master armed with power sword, bolt pistol and combi-weapon...

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Librarian Turmiel
and Librarian Turmiel, who carries a bolt pistol and force sword.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Tactical Squad
You also get Veteran Sergeant Raphael and his Tactical Squad...

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Ravenwing Bike Squadron
and Sergeant Arion and his Ravenwing Bike Squadron who are equipped with twin-linked boltguns.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Deathwing Terminator Squad
Lastly you receive Deathwing Terminator Squad Barachiel.

All are resplendent in the iconography of the Dark Angels. From the finely crafted purity seals to studded power fists, to the Librarian with codex, keys and ornate sword, through to the Bikes with angel-wing panels, they are some of the most resplendent Space Marines ever sculpted.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Chaos Lord
To oppose the Dark Angels is the Crimson Slaughter. These Chaos Space Marine models contain attributes that will leave you slack-jawed in awe. Warp distress shows through on every detail of armour on the models.

The full Crimson Slaughter line-up includes: Kranon the Relentless, Chaos Lord - armed with power sword and plasma pistol; Mortis Metalikus: Helbrute - armed with multi-melta and power fist; and Draznicht's Ravagers: Chosen.

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Sect Anarkus
They stand alongside Chaos Cultists made up of Sect Anarkus, which carries close combat weapons,

Warhammer 40k Dark Vengeance box set - Sect Tetchvar
and Sect Tetchvar, which carries ranged weapons such as autoguns. Both units are garbed in sinister-looking cloaks, masks and hoods.

The Dark Vengeance box set is not a bad value for the money. You get all the above mentioned items for only 99 US dollars! That's only about 2.00 each. So whether you want to start a Dark Angels or Chaos Space Marines army, want to add to your existing collection, or simply gape at the beautiful miniatures, this is a great purchase for you.

                                                                           Have a Great Battle,
                                                                           The Old Crow

Friday, August 24, 2012

A Great Hall for SAGA or Dark Age Historical Wargames

Creating a great hall for SAGA was in the planning for some time. There was rare opportunities to get one built but today saw the start of something big. The hall is loosely based on Hleidargard, the heart of the Skjoldung dynasty. Dated around 900 AD it is the largest Viking Age structure found in Scandinavia.

The remains of Hleidargard were unearthed near the small village of Lejre on the central Danish island of Sjælland. Lejre, a site with a long history of prehistoric habitation. It was a massive 48.3 by 11.5 meters or 158.4 x 37.7 feet. Here's the basics of the structure with the front pillars added.

The roof will be removable and will have working doors and balcony inside and out, A Gripping Beast Saxon Thegn is pictured with it for size comparison. We'll post the complete how to build this great hall once we get it finished. Hopefully not to far in the future.

Till then, have a great battle!
The Old Crow

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Warhammer Forge New Release - Chaos Dwarf Bull Centaurs


A good friend of Battleground Hobbies has been a Chaos Dwarf collector since he started with the original models back in the early 90's. To his disappointment, the army isn't really supported anymore but thanks to Forgeworld, they have not been forgotten.

A new release from the Warhammer Forge are twisted amalgams of ferocious bull and Chaos Dwarf, Bull Centaur Renders! These hulking and monstrous creatures rage with a great hunger for flesh.

The first of their kind were survivors of the Time of Chaos. Warped by the tides of horror that engulfed the Warhammer world.

This set of incredibly detailed full resin models comprises three Bull Centaurs armed with hand weapons and shields.

Needless to say, they are truly hulking as seen here compared to an Empire Outrider.

These guys will give Karl Franz and a unit of Demigryph knights more than they bargained for.

The Warhammer Forge models were designed by Edgar Skomorowski and are available to pre-order now with an expected ship date of  Friday 31st August.

Here's some additional images for your viewing pleasure!


Have a Great Battle!
The Old Crow


 
 



 


Sunday, August 19, 2012

How To build The Leaping Wolf Inn for Warhammer Fantasy or other Medieval War-Game


I originally wrote a similar post on how to build the Leaping Wolf Inn on another blog, but thought it would be better suited here on Battleground Hobbies. We were looking for a Warhammer centerpiece to build a game about on the battleground and decided a fortified inn would fit the bill perfectly
How to Build a Warhammer Inn
We started with the basics, foamcore, cardboard and lots of bits. Add a trusty x-acto knife, ruler and a little imagination and away we go.
How to Build a Warhammer InnWe had a couple plastic roof tops from an old toy laying around in our parts bin so we scaled things to match. It's a touch smaller than the 28mm scale but works sufficiently for games. The base was cut from the a piece of hardboard. We cut the doorways from cardboard and trimmed out the foam to slide in them in place. The main building is a heavy card stock from some computer part packaging.

Once the walls were glued on the base, the gate door is slid into place in the outer wall opening.

How to Build a Warhammer Inn
Using cardboard from an old Dell computer keyboard box we fashioned the back of the inn, servants hut and the stable. Blue insulation board was cut and scored with a pencil to make the stone chimney

This is a detail of the stable being assembled. You can use any balsa wood or in this case, the stick from a small firework, for the pillars.
How to Build a Warhammer Inn
Here's the Inn assembled with all the structures. Now we need to add final touches, a coat of paint and all the "flair".
How to Build a Warhammer Inn
The wood slats on the back of the inn and slate shingles were cut from an empty box of "Madagascar Red" tea we recently finished. The shingle pieces are 3.5 inches long and .5 inches wide. Notches were cut from the edge in narrow V shapes approx. .25 inches deep. They were overlapped to form the rows of shingles. Individual shingles were cut and overlapped to build the ridge along the top.

The Inn roof was painted black and then brushed with terra-cotta. The inn itself was painted tan with washes of burnt sienna and black added for weathering. The slate roof was also painted black and then dry-brushed in medium and light gray.

The Leaping Wolf Inn - Stable and Servants Quarters
Fur was glued onto the stable roof and the brushed down with a mixture of white glue and water. Once it dried layers of dry-brushing were used to make it appear as straw.

Sand was mixed with glue on the base and also dry-brushed to show the texture. Blended turf and tan ballast, from Woodland Scenics, was mixed and glued to the base for the grassy areas.

The Leaping Wolf Inn - Courtyard trees and stone walkway
Small pieces of card-stock were cut to represent stones for the pathway. Bits like the wheel, trunk and firewood stack were added. The trees were part of a plastic plant purchased at Michael's for $1.50. I yanked the "flowers" off and have about a dozen small trees.
The Leaping Wolf Inn
Here's the front of the "Leaping Wolf Inn" with windows, front door and sign posted out front.
The Leaping Wolf Inn - Courtyard
Inside the finished courtyard, you can see the chimney stonework . We added some Alcatani pikemen and a couple of Lumpin Croops halflings for scale. 

I believe that's Ned Hamfist holding the standard.

The Leaping Wolf Inn - Front View

Over view of the front with the stable and servants quarters visible out back.
The Leaping Wolf Inn - Courtyard
One more with the courtyard and guests of the inn.

The Leaping Wolf Inn - Sign post
Here's a good view of the inn sign that was added and painted. It does say leaping if you squint.

The Leaping Wolf Inn - Courtyard
Please let us know what you think of the Leaping Wolf Inn. On a future post we'll relay a battle report that'll take place around it!

The Leaping Wolf Inn - Stable and Servants Quarters
Have a Great Battle!
The Old Crow

Sunday, August 12, 2012

How to Build Ruglud's Armoured Orcs for Warhammer


Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
In Warhammer, Ruglud's Armoured Orcs are a great addition to your force. These guys can be added as a rare choice to any Warhammer army, other than Bretonnians, High Elves, Wood Elves and Dwarves . The Heavy Armour gives these guys a longer life and the crossbows pack a punch. We decided instead of getting the actual figures, we'd show you how to make your own. We got hold of a handful of orc archers. They are pretty readily available on eBay.

We added a few metal pieces from the miscelaneous stuff box for the command crew. An old savage orc musician and goblin for Maggot, the standard bearer. We also acquired several sprues of crossbows, Ruglud's actual head and thanks to the plethora of orc parts, we gathered heads, arms and weaponry.

Upon assembly we began to think of Rugluds many escapades and decided he and his boyz would have collected many trophies along the way. Part of their motto is to fight for gold, for food, and for the chance to strip the enemy of anything worth taking. Once again we raided the parts bins and came up with some suitable pieces to add to our boyz.

Ruglud Bonechewer
We'll start with the command crew. For Ruglud Bonechewer we used one of the orc archers and gave him Ruglud's actual head. You can use anything that would stand out from the rest. An orc shield insert was added for his chestplate, a crossbow in his right hand and then the left was repositioned and a hand weapon was inserted.

Ruglud Bonechewer
A chaos skull was placed on his pouch in the back.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs Musician
The old metal savage orc musician needed a bit of work. We added an armoured shoulder pad, an empire helmet was carved off the soldier wearing it and placed on the musicians head and lastly a piece of plasticard was attached under his belt.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs Musician
His crossbow was added to his back, handy for when he needs to put the drum down.

Maggot, Ruglud's Armoured Orcs Standard Bearer
The goblin was from somewhere that I can't remember right now, but he worked great as Maggot. We added an old orc metal standard top and a Bretonian helmet and shield to mimic the actual standard bearer from Ruglud's set.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
Now we move on to the troops! These first two orc boyz scored relics from the Sauruses in a Lizardman army. The guy on the left had his left arm raised, bow removed and Saurus halbard added. He also has a quiver from the tomb kings army, shoulder armour and obviously a crossbow.
His mate has a lizardman chestplate, shoulder pads and hand weapon. He also had his right arm replaced, hand weapon removed from it and crossbow inserted.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
Orc boy number three had his bow arm removed and cut to give it an upward angle. A spiked shoulder pad and dwarf pick axe finish him off.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
Ruglud's number four has acquired a great piece of shoulder armor and has had a chaos sword attached to his back.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
You can see where his arm was removed and shaved to also give it a more upward angle.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
Boy five is basically intact with additions of the dwarf shield for a chest plate, shoulder armour and crossbow

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
OK, orc boy six! his choppa arm was left intast but the curve was shaved off the choppa to add variety in the weaponry. A dwarf's face guard now resides on his shoulder armour.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
His bow arm was replaced with one that will keep the crossbow down and in so he can fill the back rank. The unlucky dwarf donated his axe too, posthumously of course.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
Lucky number 7 has a new sword arm with choppa, a groovy spikey shoulder pad and crossbow.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
He added an extra quiver on top of his standard issue.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
On to number eight of nine! This guy is all about the back rank. The bow arm was removed and one with a hand weapon and tight angle added. He received the standard issue shoulder armour and he's sportin' a fashionable empire cap.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
On his back he's wearing a Lizardman shield. The saurus had no more need for it if you get my meaning.

Lastly Ruglud's number nine orc boy is one of my favorites! He has a new bow arm with tight angle for rear rank and the choppa was replaced with the crossbow. His right hand needed something, so a tomb king skull was the perfect fit.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
Add the shoulder armour and Tomb Kings shield and he too was finished.

Ruglud's Armoured Orcs
So there you have them, in all their unfinished glory.

Ruglud, Maggot, a musician and seven armoured Orcs costs a total of 190 points. Additional orcs are 12 points each.

Maggot the Goblin standard bearer has survived countless battles and is regarded as a lucky mascot. His presence encourages the Orcs to fight all the more fiercely. The banner that Maggot enthusiastically waves adds + 2 to combat resolution rather than +1.

In addition to this. Maggot seems to lead a charmed life, and as a result has a 3+ Ward save. He may not accept challenges, for he is not in effect a character, just a particularly lucky Goblin. If Maggot dies, the banner is lost with him, and no other Orc can pick it up.

Ruglud's Armoured Orc stats are as follows:

Profile  М    WS    BS    S    T    W    I    A    Ld  
Ruglud
4
5
3
4
5
2
3
3
8
Maggot
4
2
3
3
3
1
2
1
6
 Armoured Orc 
4
3
3
3
4
1
2
1
7

These guys also have their own animosity chart.

1-2 Let's show 'em what these crossbows can do!
Ruglud's Armoured Orcs shoot at the closest unit, friend or foe. All models in the unit can fire without movement penalty at the nearest target in any direction, ignoring the usual restrictions for line of sight and fire arcs - this is an exception to the normal rules for shooting. The shots are worked out immediately, not in the Shooting Phase, and the models themselves are not moved. The unit cannot do anything else that turn. If there are no units within range, the unit Squabbles instead (see the next entry).

3-6 Squabble
An internal squabble amongst the ranks soon grows into a minor riot with fists and curses flying. This throws the unit into disorder and prevents all moving and shooting this turn. The unit can do nothing this turn while Ruglud cracks heads together to restore order.

Ruglud, Maggot and the musician
Well we've included the entire sordid history for Ruglud and his Armoured Orcs, but its lengthy so we'll sign out first and then you can read as much as you want!

Have a Great Battle,
The Old Crow






History of Ruglud's Armoured Orcs

Ruglud Bonechewer is a powerful and wealthy Orc mercenary who sells his services all across the known world, from the treacherous Badlands in the south up through the realm of the Border Princes and throughout the mountains surrounding the Empire. Rumours suggest that even the Empire itself has hired his services on occasion. Ruthless to the core, Ruglud's only loyalty is to himself and he has been known to change sides during battle if offered more payment and, more importantly, more opportunity to loot and pillage. Over the years the band has equipped itself with a motley assortment of equipment, stripping scraps of armour from countless defeated foes, and always taking the crossbows and bolts that they prize so highly.

Ruglud Bonechewer was once a mighty Orc warlord, leading the Crooked Eye tribe to countless victories. Uniting the local tribes, his army stormed through the Grey Mountains and World's Edge Mountains. He staged numerous successful raids on Dwarf strongholds and Empire towns, as well as upon various Goblin tribes that refused to grovel before him.

Ruglud suffered one devastating defeat, many miles to the east of the Old World, and in that defeat he also lost his position as warlord of the Crooked Eye. Caught in a cunning and well implemented ambush by a powerful Chaos Dwarf force, his tribe were cut down in their hundreds by the withering hail of missile fire that the Chaos Dwarfs sent into their midst. The Orcs return fire was unsurprisingly inaccurate. The heavy armour worn by the Dwarfs deflected the few arrows that found their targets.

As Ruglud fled, many of his tribe turned on him, blaming him in typical Orcish manner for the defeat. Ruglud bullied a small group of the Orcs into staying by his side and fled with them to the south, pursued by the arrows and insults of his former tribe.

They came across an ancient, seemingly impenetrable stronghold built into the mountainside. It appeared to be deserted, and the superstitious Orcs cowered at the sound of the wind howling over its blackened battlements. As they picked their way around the huge boulders at the base of the stronghold walls, the smallest member of the group, the runt known only as 'Maggot', tripped and fell. Ruglud blinked in surprise, for the Goblin had disappeared from sight. Moments later, he stuck his head up through a hole in the ground, exclaiming that he had found a tunnel.

The Orcs refused to enter the tunnel, scared of the 'bad spirits' that inhabited the stronghold. Ruglud pushed the Orcs aside roughly, determined to show them that he was not afraid. Besides, he thought, there might be something worth looting inside. Ruglud grabbed Maggot by the scruff of his neck, forcing him to walk in front of him into the low tunnel.

They came upon a scene of devastation, the aftermath of a titanic battle in the tunnels and grand halls of what must have been a Dwarf stronghold. Dwarf bodies lay strewn across the floors in unbelievable numbers, and at first it looked to Ruglud as if Dwarf had been fighting Dwarf. As he looked closer at the bodies, he saw that some were the Chaos Dwarfs that he had suffered his great defeat against.

Bloodied armour and weapons were scattered across the stone floor. At Ruglud's feet lay a Dwarf crossbow, which he picked up absently in one huge hand. His gaze lingered on the weapon as a sizeable lump of masonry suddenly fell on his thick head, and a moment of inspiration washed over him. The unexpected thought filled his cunning Orcish mind: "If ya can't beat em, join 'em!" He began to strip the armour off the Dwarfs' bodies, haphazardly strapping the plates to his oversized frame. Climbing unsteadily out of the hole, he stood before his Orc followers who fell back before him. With a strange, determined look in his eyes, he growled at the Orcs: "We'll show 'em how it's done."

And so Ruglud's Armoured Orcs were formed, the only known band of Orcs to implement the combination of armour and crossbow. They are still disliked and distrusted by other Orc tribes, but their fighting qualities are grudgingly accepted. Wherever the band travels, it fights for gold and for food, and for the chance to strip the enemy of anything worth taking.