As you read previously, I had found my theme: Friedrich, the
Fox Lord, has chosen a life of virtual exile. His lair lies in a forgotten
patch of the Great Forest, known as Vergessenwald, in the far north of Talabecland, near
the border with Kislev. There, he is assembling a growing warband of mavericks,
miscreants, and sell-swords. Each man has, for his own personal reasons, chosen
a life of war and opportunism, far from the great merchant cities of the Empire.
So what next? Some like to finesse their army lists. I’m
much more impulsive and decided to dive straight in with a test model. The
roster can wait for another day.
The first on the field
If you’re starting out in the hobby, it’s tempting to want to
paint up a whole unit in one go. Resist the temptation! Take a bit of time to
try out your colour scheme; it will save you a deal of inconvenience if you’re
not happy with the result (repainting a whole regiment is about as
disheartening as the hobby can get).
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| Looks familiar? |
The men of Talabecland wear quartered yellow and red clothes in the “puff
and slash” style - shamelessly pinched from the Landsknecht. Though Friedrich’s men are outcasts and fugitives, they are
proud men and retain their province’s colours. Besides, if you are on the run,
you’re not going to blow precious money on new clothes, when it could be spent
of drink and tavern wenches instead!
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| The colours of Talabecland from the 5th edition army book |
Yet even once my third attempt was completed, I wasn't entirely satisfied. I had a go at painting the contrasting colours in the slash. It took away a bit of the depth, as it means filling in the recesses, but bring a splash of additional colour. Should I stick with it? I decided to put it to the vote on Instagram.
A resounding 88% chose the contrasting colours. Thanks, guys; you've added countless hours of painting to the army! To be fair, it does look better.
“He’s a bit of a character…”
One cool thing when coming back to the Old World after a
decade away is that you discover loads of bits and pieces which you forgot you
had. When I originally intended to get back into it, I had bought the (then
new) General of the Empire box. It came with really generous sprues which had
torsos and legs for 1 mounted character and 1 on foot. I had assembled the
mounted one (and will resurrect him as Friedrich the Fox Lord himself), but the
foot one was still on the sprue – with loads of weapon variants and
accessories!
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| The Empire General box - a lovely little set, full of useful spares! |
The Old World of Warhammer is full of characters, who each
bring… character to the game! It was time to introduce the first character to
my force.
As I hadn’t worked out an army list, I decided to cobble him
together however took my fancy. Friedrich’s crew being a rag-tag bunch, I
wanted a feral-looking character. One of the heads was bald, with a great big
bushy beard – perfect! Add to that a couple of spare bottles from my bitz box
and a ridiculously over-sized Warhammer, and I had a suitable character. All he needed was a fox-fur cap to emphasise with the - you guessed it - theme.
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| Spare bits and a little Green Stuff can make quite a change |
‘Mad Max’ stands (or rather slouches against a barrel) watch
at the gate during the night, challenging all who venture near for the password.
Unfortunately, old Max is a bit too fond of Kislevite vodka and makes up the
password for each new visitor. Many a man from Friedrich’s company has had to
spend the night sleeping in the cold and perilous woods outside, having failed
to talk sense with Max.
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| The garrison so far |
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| The first spearman |
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