The cast
We had our first meeting of the campaign to drool over each other's models and discuss the scenarios and fluff guidelines for the first weeks of the campaign. So, without much further ado, here you have the cast.
The Disciples of the Black, by David Whitworth
The Disciples worship the Black as a life giver. It runs the machines, it is neither good nor evil to them, just life. The Rustmen are one incarnation of Its Spirit as are the ancient fallen God Machines. They see it as their sacred duty to protect the Black.
Desert dwelling mutants: murderous, criminal and sneaky. From the Broken Mountains to Endcliff, across the desolate expanse of The Barrens past Windgrip, Malady and False Hope, the Slipgibbets scavenge the desert and battle with rival gangs. Always willing to stab an enemy in the back (or a friend, if needs be!). They are spiteful, treacherous gits.
A band of tech gangers that may not be human… They rag it around the Tor Megiddo Wastes in the Stash Wagon, looking for different and exciting substances to ingest.
The Purebred
Followers of the cunning Keeper of the Flesh, brutes obsessed with eradicating the taint of mutation from their tribe.
The Rustmen, by Saul Painters
The sacred metal creature from the myths of old, thaught lost since the Long Dark. Feared and revered in equal measure by the Yaike Yaike, they have been seen in increasing numbers since the Promethan Tower was destroyed, their strange behaviours both mistery and omen.
Another gang, the Ashtown Wasters by Ade Roberts, will also join the fight, but were not fully ready to have their picture taken.
I've also completed some more terrain, although not everything that I planned. I've added a second shanty, built exactly as the previous one. Here you can see the supporting structure made of sprue parts and a section of movement tray.
This time I decided to keep the colours of the walls and tarpaulin more distinct, hence the yellow canvas.
I've also repainted some tank traps and a truck I had made for my Astra Militarum/Chaos Cult detachment.
The truck will, most of the times, serve as a terrain piece, but it is ready to be pressed into service for 'The Caravan' scenario.
The last thing I needed to do, was to give names and a bit of background to each member of the Purebred. Here they are.
Great Father Arun, the Warleader
A giant of a man, Arun is the peak of the Keeper's efforts to breed the strongest and purest of humans.
Warfather Dez & Snapper
Hot tempered and rash, Dez seems to get along only with his trusted dusthound, Snapper.
Warfather Jax
Cool and calculating, Dez is often the only Purebred able to restrain Arun's most aggressive tendencies.
Larg, the Tribesman
One of Arun's sons, Larg just came of age and is eager to prove himself in the eyes of the more experienced warriors.
Yash, the Blemished
A Blemished since his youth, Yash is Arun's trusted attack dog, always at the Warleader's side in the thickest of fights.
Eshelon, the Rider
Nobody knows where Eshelon comes from. A loner, he keeps to the fringes of the Purebred's camps, never removing his hood. Why he joined hte tribe is still a mistery, but his skills as outrider are considered vital by Arun.
Kurk, the Blemished
A Warfather until not long ago, Kurk is still in the Keeper's care. Few doubts that, when he will return to the tribe, his shame will make him a dangerous fighter.
Mahela, the Keeper of the Flesh
Mahela had just seen twenty Red Winds when she was entrusted with Da-Ar-Vin's Book. Although Blemished shortly after, her understanding of Da-Ar-Vin's teaching is so deep that nobody dared to challenge her position. Old and withered, she is still acutely aware of the need to steer the tribe in the right direction. If she does not doubt Arun's prowess and tactical acumen, she is increasingly worried about his tyrannical attitudes.
The Keeper of the Flesh
I will tell you of the days when the Great Hunger stalked the Stone Children and the Flesh Baron and the Spirers in their golden mountains. The weak starved and the strong endured. All hungered and many changed. In those times lived Ghela of the Yaike, daughter of Warfather Aral the Black. And she made her tribe proud. She was young, but wise and strong. One day, after Red Wind had left and the tribe was on the trail to the Great Gathering, the Tainted came. Many a Brother died, but the Tainted were many and wild. Away they took Ghela, towards the mountains, to be their breeding slave. But that night, when the Tainted celebrated and fell drunk, Ghela escaped their shackles. For days and days she wandered, eating roots and drinking of the Spiked Flower. And one day she saw a gate in the rock. The Skull-Cog was on it and behind it was a great cave where Rustmen toiled around great machinery. There lived Da-Ar-Vin, the ancient holy men that talked with the Rustmen. He saw Ghela and he saw she was strong and wise. He took her with him and tought her of the days before Black Cloud and Fell Water. He tought her the language of the Rustmen and the secrets of the Flesh. He taught her how to keep It pure and strong and how to breed man and animal. And his teaching, she recorded in the language of the Rustmen. And one day, Da-Ar-Vin returned to Mother Stone and the Rustmen fell into slumber. Ghela took the Book of Da-Ar-Vin and sought her lost tribe. When she found them, she was old and her womb dry, but she tought them how to make their Children stronger. And when Mother Stone called her, she passed the Book of Da-Ar-Vin to the wisest of the Mothers. And with the teachings of Da-Ar-Vin, wise Mother after wise Mother keep our Flesh pure. So it is that Ghela's tribe came to be the Purebred.
While I was building the Purebred and developing their fluff over the last couple of months, I thaught the Keeper of the Flesh needed to be represented by a model. After a quick chat with Saul I settled on the Necromancer as the base model. First of all, I replaced the skeleton on which the model is standing with a front plate from the Sentinel kit.
To convey the idea that the Keeper of the Flesh is a debased kind of Magus Biologis and that it (at the time I wasn't sure about its sex) also operated the Blemished to remove their mutations, I used the head and harms from the Medicae Servitor from the 40k Objectives. To attach the arms I had to cut and resculpt the pinion-like sleeves of the Necromancer.
Then, I wanted to give it long, flowing hair. Here again Saul had the brilliant idea of using the Tree-revenants hair. Two of them were cut and glued around the head and Greenstuff used to join them and add some more strands running over the model's shoulders.
I have also removed the Necromancer's dagger and replaced it with a tech trinket from the Inquisitor range from our bitsbox. The book, I kept, and built it into the fluff of the Keeper of the Flesh.
The paint scheme was alredy set, but to distinguish the Keeper of the Flesh from the fighters among the Purebred I added some green and painted its hair white. It was while painting the model that I realised it must be a woman. It fit its appearance but also the social structure of the Purebred, with the healthy males fighting, the healthy females breeding and the Blemished acting as menials and expendable cannon fodder. The Keeper of the Flesh sits outside this structure. Although old and a Blemished herself, she is vital for the tribe's survival. And the other great thing is that, since we will use Necromunda rules, the rules for a Rogue Doc fits her perfectly!
I have also been working on a shanty for our board, using the STC-Ryza Pattern Ruins as the base model. The sprue itself and a piece of old moving tray provided an armour for some ondulated cardboard, creating walls and roof to close the corner formed by the two pieces of ruin I used.
Then I took an old napkin, cut it to size, tore some holes in it and soaked it in liquid Greenstuff to create a tarpaulin cover. The chimney stack is a coctail straw with a tiny bit of ondulate cardboard glued on top.
Before painteing the model, I glued some slate chips to represent the stones used to keep the tarpaulin in place.
The palette is again made of browns, oranges, sephia and metal applied as drybrushes and washes over a black undercoat which had received two zenithal highlights of reddish-brown at a 45º angle and, very lightly, of white at a 90º angle.
While the Purebred are now complete, I have plans to build a small shanty town and some natural features such as pools of contaminated water and tar. Hopefully, I should have them ready before we start the campaign in two weeks time!
Epilogue: Kalyustar's Trial
"This vile conjurer has been using forbidden magic, we all have seen him! Summoning skeletal hands from the ground, spreading unnatural fear all around himself, leeching the life essence of the basest creatures!"
A murmur run through the mercenaries of the Gilded Hand Free Companies. Van Toorn's accusations were undeniable.
"Under the benevolent rule of our great God-king, there is only one punishement for such crimes" the Witch Hunter paused savouring his final triumph "Death at the stake!"
Van Toorn stood in the centre of the Broken Circle, Kalyustar in front of him, head bowed, the Skull cupped in his hands.
"That's enough, Witch Hunter" the Aurpards' pikes wavered, as the men parted to let Lord Captain Rodrik step into the Circle. The seasoned veteran took three measured steps, putting himself between the Witch Hunter and the wizard.
"Should I remember you that your Order has lost its powers over Venithya and its people the day your God-king reneged his oaths to protect the Realms and withdrew behind Azyr's Gates, now so long ago?"
Pieter van Toorn hissed in frustration. No matter how many efforts the Order of Azyr and the rest of the Devoted of Sigmar had spent, the Elders of the Gilded Hand and their generals remained reluctant allies to Sigmar's cause. And their grudge towards Sigmar was not entirely unjustified. He knew too well not to jeopardise such a fragile alliance.
"I beg your pardon, Lord Captain. Mine was just a reminder. But if you won't consider it, perhaps you should ponder what has the Gilded Hand gained by the actions of Kalyustar here in the Harrowmark".
"This, I will do" Rodrik turned his one good eye onto the wizard "Kalyustar of the Gilded Hand, by the authority bestowed onto me by the Elders' Council I demand you account for the reward due to the Free Companies gathered here and for your dues to the Gilded Hand's Vault."
Kalyustar remained silent. And so did the Skull.
"You took three Companies, claiming these woods will hold valuable alchemicals and artefacts. I was called here, bringing another Company with me, as this Azyrite accuses you of witchcraft. Respond. Now."
"Was not the Kharadron that the Witch Hunter wanted for their betrayal? Have I not delivered them?"
"This you did. Yet, the men are still awaiting for their pay. You have nothing in your hand to offer to the Elders. And with the orruks holding the Skydock, we are faced with a perilious Realmgate travel to return to Venithya. You have put valuable resources at risk for no apparent gain. Or there is one?"
Give him what he wants, Soulchemist. My Master appreciated your gift. He will reward you richly
"These men, and you too Lord Captain, are still alive because of me. If not a reward, doesn't that deserve mercy?"
"How so? We fought as you hid behind the walls of the Rose & Schyte. You owe your life to us."
Kalyustar paused for a moment, pondering the Skulls's latest words.
Yes, Soulchemist. Power and knowledge like you have never experienced, rather than the scorn of these miserables
"You are so limited in your understanding, Lord Captain. Force of arm is the only thing you understand. But it is souls that will win the coming wars. And I took that of the Kharadron leader, bartering it so that An'sec would spare all yours".
Silence fell over the Broken Circle. Even van Toorn was left speechless.
"It is gold you all want? Well, have it!" Kalyustar tossed a gleaming key at the Lord Captain feet "I hereby forfeit my position within the Gilded Hand and with it any claim on the contents of my laboratories. They are yours for you to do as you please and share with these men."
"So be it" the Lord Captain raised his hammer "Henceforth you, Kalyustar of Venithya, are no longer counted among the Gilded Hand. I accept your payment on behalf of these men which shall receive according to their efforts in your expedition. But for your dabbling with the vile An'sec, I exile you. By the authority of the Elders, you are never to set foot inside Venithya, under penalty of death!" the hammer fell, ringing loudly on the stones of the Broken Circle.
"He must die now!" shouted van Toorn "He's a traitor, a vile heretic!"
"Men, remove this fanatic from my presence" at once van Toorn was surrounded by levelled blades.
"You have no authority here! Nor any claim on Kalyustar's soul . That, is for him to keep."
You were right, Soulchemist. His understanding is so limited. We both know to whom every soul belongs
The Scorched Plain
And with these terrains ready, I'll take a break from the hobby until we actually start the campaign.
Since I had already painted the rocks on the Purebred bases as volcanic glass (or is it solidified tar?) I continued the theme on the terrains. On a black undercoat, I gave a basecoat of Abadon Black followed by a light drybrush of Dawnstone to pick up the natural grain of the slate. To achieve the shine, I first washed them with Drakenhof Nightshade and then coated them in 'Ardcoat. The sand on the bases was painted exacty as that on the models: heavy drybrushes of Mournfang Brown, Balor Brown, Wildrider Red and Ryza's Rust over a black undercoat.
As I was working on them, I also reworked some of the fluff from Codex Tor Megiddo, so that rather than being presented by an external narrator, it is told from the perspective of the Yaike Yaike themselves. Thanks a lot to Alexander for his comments and suggestions on an earlier version!
First came Black Cloud
and it hid the Light.
Then came Fell Water
and it drowned the world.
The tree burnt
The sea boiled
The beast roared
The man starved.
Then came Red Wind
And ash and dust rose.
In tunnels and caves
the Yaike Yaike hid.
The weak starved
The strong endured
Many changed.
All hungered.
And then Red Wind left
Out of tunnels and caves
the Children crawled
and on the Scorched Plain they met.
Bonds were forged
and conflicts settled by trial.
And there was trade
of flesh, metal and oil.
Twenty times twenty the Light rose
and Red Wind returned.
Again the Tribes hid
until Red Wind turned northward.
And as Red Wind comes and goes
We, the Stone Children, the Yaike Yaike
meet at the Great Gathering
out on the Scorched Plain.
The Sky Dock Siege
An'sec floated away, screaming in frustration. His shape had just vanished in the distance when the amethyst energies that had built up through the whole battle erupted in a violent tornado. Some distance away from the Freebooter's Tower, the Moonclan Shamans were lifted in the air and tossed around like broken puppets. Inside the Tower, Kalyustar fell to his knees, his mind ravaged by the roaring magical energies. At the Tower'a feet, the Raidho Othalas grabbed the loot and run for shelter. Only van Toorn saw them leaving, his vision still fuzzy as he slowly came to consciousness.
***
It had taken days for the worst aftershocks of the magical upheaval to subside and allow safe Realmgate travel. Pieter van Toorn stood in front of the Haunted Gate as four heavily armoured figures emerged from the greenish light.
"Witch Hunter... why that sudden call? Venithya and its Free Companies have pressing business in much more chearful and prosperous lands", the one-eyed veteran's tone was one of veiled reproach.
"Then, Lord Captain Rodrik, ask why one of your mages has kept three Companies here, way longer than required for his original task" a flicker of rage passed through the General's good eye "But there's more. Kharadron. As always, they invoked their Sigmar-forsaken Code and turned onto us. Worse, they stroke a deal with the servants of Nagash..."
"And I guess, considering the latest developments, you don't want them to leave the area?"
"Precisely! Whatever is in their caskets goes to your men. But first, we have to find them. I've lost them in the magic storm"
"They are inside the Sky Dock, waiting for a ship" Kalyustar's voice sounded hollow behind his mask. From where he had appeared, the two men couldn't say.
"If this is true, you might have finally proven yourself, wizard" there was an icy undercurrent of menace in van Toorn's voice.
"Yet, you will have to explain your actions to the Gilded Hand Elders" as always, Captain Rodrik was just matter-of-fact. But that did not take away from the implicit threat.
I WARNED YOU THERE WILL BE NO GRATITUDE. REMEMBER WHO INFORMED YOU
Kalyustar caressed his Skull. "Should we leave these issues for later and deal with pressing matters?"
Captain Rodrik ordered the Fencers and Aurelian's Aurpards to form up together and prepare to advance. The Marksmen and Cuirassiers covered their left flank. On the right, van Toorn preared his pistol.
As Kalyustar had warned, the Raidho Othalas have had time to strenghten their hold on the Sky Dock. Every single access was manned, while their Aetherchemist supervised the defense from the Dock platform.
On the edges of Wörtbad, An'sec, the Ordeshal Riders, the White Lady and her servants approached through the parched fields.
The Rotmoons turned around Fallow End's House and emerged onto the village main square.
Whit chilling screams, the Ordeshal Riders approached the southern wall of the Skydock.
Thunderous volleys rung in all direction. Ineffective against the incorporeal Riders, bouncing off the walls of Fallow End's House, the aethershots turned out to be the undoing of van Toorn and the Cuirassiers.
As the smoke cleared, the Sky Docks were simultaneously assoulted from the north, south and the east. Kapitán da Leeva and Rockeye the Leadbelcher burst into the building, slamming onto the Kharadron Chemist.
Sheltered behind the Rose & Scythe balustrade, Kalyustar watched the fight unfold.
With the Witch Hunter gone, it is just a matter of time. Wait and see, Soulchemist, just wait!
Bortagno ad the Ordeshal Riders kept battering at the eastern gate.
On the southern wall, the White Lady burst through the press of bodies to drink deep of the Kharadron Navigator's blood.
Kapitán da Leeva's realmstone-loaded pistol belched a cloud of malevolent gheists at the Aetherchemist.
Down below, the Rotmoons cheered at the balst and rushed forward. Don Grotto hold back to land the boys moral support with his high-pitched shouts.
The second wave of the Free Companies reached the northern wall, the Aurpard's pike striking over the Fencers' heads. The Kharadron numbers were seriously reduced now.
Now Soulchemist! In a fluid motion, Kalyustar lifted the Skull. Amethyst lighting engulfed the Aetherchemist, his soul then drifting back as a purple mist. Kapitán da Leeva frothed with rage at being deprived of the kill, but the Sky Dock was safely under his control.
Pressed on all sides and without leadership, the few surviving duardin dropped their weapons and surrendered to the Free Companies. The Kharadron were let through the Free Companies lines as Captain Rodrik prepared to be charged by the Ordeshal Host.
And then, the undead retreated.
The men stood motionless, trying to understand what had happened. But none of them had noticed the dark shape darting from Kalyustar's Skull to be fondly embraced by An'sec. A faintly visible duardin's face retreated from the gheist's hand, a soundless scream pictured on its lips.
