Walking the Dusty Trails - a Wasteland Trader

After clearing up my hobby space last week, I found a couple of relatively old unfinished projects. I decided to tackle one of them and get it finished, rather than put it in another box to be found in another couple of years!

Xenos at the Desert Fringes - T'Sulian Warriors

Sometimes you see an idea that's so cool, you just have to copy it! Since GW's Blackstone Fortress game was released, I've seen half a dozen or so really great figures with spindle drone heads as heads or masks. I knew it was something I wanted to try myself, and decided the best way to use them would be on some robe-clad desert-dwelling xenos race in the Tusken raider tradition.

I've converted and painted a pair of aliens based on this template, and I like them so much I intend to make more!

T'Sulian tribesfolk keep watch over key trading routes.

The Ymgarl Leech

The real beauty about this hobby is that people can make their own models to fill gaps in their collection, whether that's conversions or fan sculpts. I recently received a fantastic model which evokes the genestealer-csith hybrid pictured in the Rogue Trader rulebook. It came from a fellow genestealer fan who has had it sculpted and a handful cast. 

Terrified crew-members attempt to gun down an escaped specimen they were transporting.

Centauroid Alien - Uuti the Gomo Heavy

I fancied a little change of pace from fantasy skirmish figures, so had a root around in my boxes and pulled out the first completely different figure I fancied.

The figure in question is Uuti the Gomo heavy - a lovely centauroid sloth-like alien figure from Gydran Miniatures. I picked the figure up on a whim a few months back, and she fits perfectly into my Super Hairy Alien Mercenary Squad (what now appears to be an actual thing!).

Thrust and Parry - the Sword Master

After finishing off my arrogant lordlings from the other week, I was left with a third figure from the Vespero's Vendetta set. I didn't want three long-haired duellists, so I picked up a few bits to see what else I could do with him.

Happily I'd been gifted some 3D printed shields (thanks Mike!) from someone else's somewhat more extensive Citadel Guard project. It was a simple job to grab another head and add the shield to give me a much less flamboyant (and possibly more effective) swordsman!

Arrogant Lordlings - Citadel Guard Duellists

Part of the fun I've been having with my Mordheim / Frostgrave warband is selecting models for a particular role. Whilst it would be easy to have a rag-tag group of models with no visual coherence, I'm trying to add to the warband with models that fit visually and thematically. Cloaks are one of the dominant features on the Lone Wolf Citadel Guard, so I'm trying where possible, to ensure that my models are wearing cloaks. As a secondary criterion, I'm aiming to primarily use sculpts by one of the Perry twins.

In Mordheim, shields are a sub-standard option. Ideally you want your swordsmen to be armed with a sword and dagger as a minimum (or sword/axe or sword/mace). In Frostgrave, the Treasure Hunter soldier is equipped with a sword and dagger. There aren't that many cloak-wearing two hand weapon wielding Perry sculpts around, but I recalled the mid-1990s regiment of renown Vespero's Vendetta. A couple of those guys would be perfect!

A Bolt in the Chest - Citadel Guard Crossbowmen

 After all the combat-oriented troopers I've painted up for my Lone Wolf Citadel Guard patrol (for Mordheim, Frostgrave and now possibly Warcry gaming), it was about time I added to the single missile trooper.

The second crossbowman is actually the model that set the look for these troops - the bandit from the Lone Wolf range. The third crossbowman is another Citadel feudal / Bretonnian figure. All three share a lot of visual similarities - take a look at their padded jerkins, helmets and leggings.