Hiram's Lost Legion

Back in the old days it wasn't easy to gather large units of extremely skillful, experienced and disciplined warriors, unconditionally loyal to its leader and faithful to the cause. One of those leaders who succeeded to gain upmost respect and loyalty from his fellow warriors was Hiram Von Todtstein, a mighty king who commanded an elite unit of warriors known as the 1st. Hiram's Volunteer Division or Hiram’s Legion. Members of this Legion were ready to shed their blood for bellowed king, who was at the same time their comrade in battle. Division was known for its stubbornness and relentlessness and was one of the most renowned throughout the Old World. Hiram’s Division was usually deployed were toughest fighting was going on in order to "extinguish the flames" in shortest time possible. 

On one cold morning, the Legion was sent to the Cursed Marshes with task to annihilate the Skaven horde which had strongholds and secret hideouts in this area from which they continuously raided the nearby city of Marienburg, capital of Wastelands, and other surrounding human settlements. Why was the Legion sent on this mission alone, and in secrecy, remains a mystery. What we do know is that upon entering the Cursed Marshes, Legion was never to be seen again. Seems that their foe, the Skaven horde, also fled the area, never to infest it again. Tales were told of daemonic swamp dwellers, ancient demons that were somehow part of the marsh itself, of strange mists and abominations staring from the swampy abyss. However destiny of the 1st. Division together with the Skaven horde became a thing of the past and legend, up until the recent days. 

Hiram, returning to his new (un)life knew very well where to head first, for he never forgot his faithful and fearful legion. And thus, risen from the eerie swamp, the legion marches once again, only this time under a darker banner… 

I really had a blast making this unit. Currently it is just 20 man strong but I definitely plan to add more ranks to it. Hopefully I'll reach 50 with time. I wanted these skeletons to look like they were freshly risen from the ground, with all the dirt, lichen, moss, grass and other vegetation growing on them. Accordingly, I made their weapons and armour really ragged and rusty. The whole process was a bit time-consuming because after painting I had to add the pigments for rust and dirt and also various flock, static grass, leaves, etc, but I think it was worth it. The miniatures are Games Workshop Deathrattle Skeleton Warriors.

And here are some photos of the individual skeleton warriors:

Armored Skeletons

Lately I've been working on my Armored Skeletons. So far the unit is 25 strong. I plan to go up to 50. I am really pleased with how the unit is turning out, especially the shields! If you are interested in how I made these unique shields, check out the following post: Converting Kite Shields.

Converting Kite Shields

For my OOP Armored Skeletons I wanted to create special shields and make the unit really stand out. The original ones are small rounded shields with decorations that look a bit childish to me, although, I must admit, totally in the spirit of the 90s Warhammer Fantasy Battles. :)

Looking at the miniatures I thought that the kite shields would fit them perfectly and make them look striking. It then came to me that the Tomb Kings tower shields that I have laying around could be converted into cool looking kite(ish) shields.

Since I don't have the plastic ones, but only metal, I decided to make molds in silicone rubber and cast the shields in resin. This way I will save the original shields and make the converting process easier. You can use plastic ones if you have them. I decided to use three different designs.

After I made my recasts in resin it was time to start cutting and shaving unwanted parts of the original design. Parts that I cut off are marked with red color, and those that I shaved off are marked in green. To get that V shape I simply cut off the lower parts of the shield. I removed those hanging parchments on the front side of the shields. On the back I removed the handles and over-leaping canvas.

Next, it was time to carve in the wood-grain in the parts that got flat after shaving. For this I used a sharp scalpel blade.

Now the shields were ready for some modeling putty. I used Green Stuff to model the metal rim on the edges of the shields and the circle (gluing area) on the back side.

Finally, after the Green Stuff has hardened completely, I added rivets to the rims on both sides.

To save some time, I again made the mold for the converted shields and multiplied them. :)

And here you can see the shields in action:

Hiram Von Todtstein

Way back in the old days this ancient king was the last descendant of one of the oldest noble families that called the Empire their home. He was a mighty warrior and a wise king, accompanied by a trusted retinue of men who never faltered in the face of peril. As a ruler, he displayed awe-inspiring fearlessness and his warriors followed him unflinchingly in battle. His black, pronged crown was a gift from a mighty wizard from the eastern lands – a far region that Hiram once defended against the beastmen in one of his countless campaigns. The crown was made of a very rare, unknown material and was imbued with powerful magical incantations. This artifact gave him even greater power in battle, more control over his troops and caused great terror to his enemies. It was said that he couldn't be defeated by any means while wearing the sinister black crown. But there was a trick to it too, a dark side of the coin. Anyone looking at the king while having bad intentions towards him would became cursed by the crown and slowly but surely wither under the foul influence of the mysterious artifact. With time, or at least some sages claimed so, the crown took a life of its own. The king was possessed by it completely, his willpower eventually shriveling to nothingness. Eventually, the king went raving mad and became a soulless puppet controlled by the crown. On his last known campaign against the rising threat from the east, it is said he just rode off during a moonless night into peculiar mists that appeared out of nowhere. He was not seen again. Apparently, this mist led him to another world, one yet unknown to mortals. There, he was lost for ages – until today. He was last spotted near the Sylvanian border, leading a vast contingent of skeleton warriors, their standard bearer displaying the flag of the New Night Order. Another mystery surrounding Hiram? Another threat to the old world? Time will tell.

Although I am a huge fan of the classic, Games Workshop, metal Wight models sculpted by Gary Morley in the early 90s, I also really like the current plastic Wight King model. The sculpt is really awesome and the pose is very dynamic. The King is standing with one leg on a tombstone and his robe is flaunting on wind. I used a cotton ball to create the effect of fog spreading around him. I'm pretty pleased how it turned out.