'Crazily Religious' and 'Technologically Advanced'; An army of the Empire (Stirland)

[Boreas_NL]

Thanks for the feedback!

Im loving that character! Really seems like he belongs on that demi-gryph!

Thanks! The models fits quite nicely and there is only a small gap at his back, just below his cape that needs filling (or camouflage by adding some bits)...

Agreed, always liked that forgeworld sculpt but it looks a lot better on the Demi-Gryph than on horseback.

And as you say, it really gives him a reason to sneer in contempt at others.

Steller work once again.

Thanks! The Demi Gryph suits him just right, indeed better than his old horse...

He looks like he was made for that Demigryph!

Thanks! I hope he will do well for me in battle...

Awesome job on the Lietpold Boreas. Looks perfectly suited to the demigryphs.
I've got that figure to paint up. It's a beauty isn't it. Never thought of mounting him on something different. Good choice.

The models from Warhammer Forge never cease to amaze me and I can only hope they'll be releasing a lot more miniatures suitable for the Empire range... I already have the command from Manann's Blades, 20 of the Ironsides and now Lietpold, all beautiful models!

I'll be adding another three Demi Gryph Knights as soon as possible, expanding the unit to six...

[Urgat]

Awesome job on the Lietpold Boreas. Looks perfectly suited to the demigryphs.
I've got that figure to paint up. It's a beauty isn't it. Never thought of mounting him on something different. Good choice.

Well i'm not denying he looks great on the demi, but, well, the horse is great as well, so it's no big deal if you didn't think of it

[Boreas_NL]

Well i'm not denying he looks great on the demi, but, well, the horse is great as well, so it's no big deal if you didn't think of it

The horse is also very detailed, and I found it most unfortunate that I had to cut it in half just to remove the cape... The horse itself is very similar in size and level of detail when compared to the newer Empire horses (from the plastic Empire General and several named characters) even though it's clear he isn't an Imperial general per se and has strong ties to the Border Princes.

[Boreas_NL]

This afternoon I've spent a couple of hours completing my last Knight and converting another Standard Bearer.


I decided to arm all my Knights with Greatswords, even though the unit isn't allowed to use them. I think they look better than the Cavalry Halberds (who turned out to be a bit too chunky for my tastes). Furthermore, Lietpold has a huge Sword strapped to his back... In games I can choose between both options. This is the body of the Knight originally destined for the Demi Gryph belonging to Lietpold...

I also converted my Standard Bearer. The previous model was nice, but didn't suit the rest of the army... As with the Cavalry Halberds, the bannerpole is too chuncky. Furthermore, I didn't like the head, it made the model look too static. Also, after adding Lietpold to the unit I decided to go for bare heads and/or floppy hats...




The new Standard Bearer... I used the original banner and drilled out the pole. His left arm was taken from the Greatsword kit and his right arm is from the Pistolier kit. After a bit of careful bending, drilling and cutting, the Standard Bearer was finished.




The two Knights together...


And together with my converted unit champion, Lietpold the Black... The Knight wielding the Greatsword will have to wait for his own Demi Gryph until I can pick up another box.

Even though the standard Demi Gryph Knights are pretty awesome, these models are much more in tune with the rest of my Stirlanders and little conversions like this will make my Demi Gryph Knights stand out a little more... Greatswords and floppy hats, you can't go far wrong with that, right?

Thanks for watching! More updates coming soon! As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated, so please let me know what you think, and, if you're feeling adventurous, feel free to rate my thread...

[MaxSigmund]

Wow, great work with the demigryphs! It's going to be one hell of a characterful unit when you're done.

[Astraeos]

Awesome bit of characterisation Boreas! There's no mistaking them for your unit now!

[Boreas_NL]

Thanks for the feedback!

Wow, great work with the demigryphs! It's going to be one hell of a characterful unit when you're done.

Thanks! I certainly hope so...

Awesome bit of characterisation Boreas! There's no mistaking them for your unit now!

Thanks! That was the aim, to tie them in with the rest of the army. If anyone is interested, I have the unused bits form the kit for trade/sale...

I'm thinking about adding Theodore Bruckner (kit-bash him, of course) to add some more punch to the unit. He's mounted on his own Demi Gryph (Reaper) which uses the Chariot sized base. Would it be alright to mount him on a regular Demi Gryph and use the official base? Would using him as a special character require permission from my opponent? How does that work with ForgeWorld books? The rules are official (right?) and the book states that he can be used as a Hero choice in an Empire army.

Anyway, Ive got an update for you...


Here's one of my converted Pikemen...




And here are his friends... I've started this unit some time ago and finally finished them. The unit numbers 26 Pikemen, including full command. I've also added a Captain (the Duellist, as his stance fits that of the rest of the unit nicely) and the new Warrior Priest (for the same reason as the Captain). The unit is now finished (apart from adding the last few shields) and will get magnetised as soon as possible. As for unit size, I think it's large enough, besides, I don't want to many hordes clogging up my deployment zone As the Pikemen will be used as Spearmen, this is my second unit of Spearmen. The other unit is used in a 5x6 formation. I will try out both formations and maybe add another two models to this unit and also make it 5x6 (if that should prove to be more practical)...


I also completed this Captain... I suspect he jizzed his pants (because he's posed in an awkward stance)... I like the model, very detailed and an eyecatching pose (I've been told it's actually a classic fencers pose).


My horde of Halberdiers... This was one of my first units, it has been with the army since the very beginning and has fought in all my battles. The odd thing is, it was never actually finished... And I don't mean the painting (though that might be an issue for some of you), but the unit never really got beyond 30 or so models... With the removal of one of the unit-fillers, that number even dropped below 30. I decided it was about time to build the last few Halberdiers. I've added six Halberdiers but still need another seven. They'll hopefully be done this week...

As soon as the Halberdiers are done, I think I might be ready for my first game with the new book...

Thanks for watching! More updates coming soon! As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated, so please let me know what you think, and, if you're feeling adventurous, feel free to rate my thread...

[Superdan21]

really loving the pikemen i've seen them done like that before and they are just awesome, if only it was financially viable to do all state troops with great swords, captains cool, you going to put something under his foot? at the moment looks like he's sneaking out a fart, somewhat surprised you chose that head i wasnt that big a fan of that one much prefered the helmeted one.

Halberds awesome again, hordes of them is the future in my opinion i don't tend to leave home with out 2 units of 40 :P
Loving the demi gryphs to, with regards to your question as far as i am aware with FW it really depends who and where you play, i think the general idea is to have permission as the stuff is often thought of as over powered or tester rules but most stuff would be fine in friendly games i reckon. With regards base size its always a strange one as bases are never set in stone for example with the new empire griffon im fairly sure i can still use my iob one with his smaller base, i think it essentially you go by what the base it comes with, with regards to tournaments etc but should be fine in friendly games to use what you want really as long as it's not to over the top size wise

Can't wait to see more, fairly sure I've already rated you 5 stars which sadly is not enough for what is in the log :P

[Demoulius]

Woah, those pikes are HUGE!!!

I dont like the new captain with "fencer's pose" tbh. Even if he is using that pose I doubt it would work with a bloody 2 handed sword (then again im no swordsmen, what do I know? )

I know what you mean about your unit of halberdiers Boreas Got the same deal with my own unit of halberdiers (got 45 of them though, half painted) and they generally dont dissapoint I just send them towards to many uphill battles

[Catferret]

As a fellow greatswords-to-halberdier user, I both empathise with your wallet and congratulate you on an awesome unit! The pikemen look great too.

The captain pose is indeed a proper defensive stance for using a greatsword. That particular pose give you reach and presents a narrow profile for your enemy trying to hit you. Easy to block/parry an incoming attack. It effectively gives you a wall of steel durectly in front of you.

[Demoulius]

Wait its an defensive pose? how would that work? Wouldnt the huge and weighty weapon slow you down inmensly?

[Astraeos]

I don't think the great sword will be extremely heavy otherwise that stance wouldn't exist probably. I've heard it's possible to swim wearing plate armour so holding a big sword at a low angle should be plausible I reckon.
Great spearmen Boreas!

[Urgat]

I think they didn't care about that at all. Do you think anybody could realistically fight with Luitpold's sword for instance?

[Boreas_NL]

Thanks for the feedback!

really loving the pikemen i've seen them done like that before and they are just awesome, if only it was financially viable to do all state troops with great swords, captains cool, you going to put something under his foot? at the moment looks like he's sneaking out a fart, somewhat surprised you chose that head i wasnt that big a fan of that one much prefered the helmeted one.

Halberds awesome again, hordes of them is the future in my opinion i don't tend to leave home with out 2 units of 40 :P
Loving the demi gryphs to, with regards to your question as far as i am aware with FW it really depends who and where you play, i think the general idea is to have permission as the stuff is often thought of as over powered or tester rules but most stuff would be fine in friendly games i reckon. With regards base size its always a strange one as bases are never set in stone for example with the new empire griffon im fairly sure i can still use my iob one with his smaller base, i think it essentially you go by what the base it comes with, with regards to tournaments etc but should be fine in friendly games to use what you want really as long as it's not to over the top size wise

Can't wait to see more, fairly sure I've already rated you 5 stars which sadly is not enough for what is in the log :P

Thanks! The Pikemen are shamelessly copied from the fantastic models made by DeathCat147 that can be found here... The idea was just too good not to use! I started the unit quite some time ago but finally got around to finishing them. The choice of heads on the Captain was a tough one. Initially the floppy hat was the obvious choice, but in the end it proved to be a close call...
Also thanks for the clarification on the ForgeWorld stuff. For friendly games it shouldn't be too much of a problem, and I'm not that much of a tournament player anyway...
Another horde of Halberdiers is something I would like very, very much... It will require some funds though, as I'm almost out of Halberds (the arms from the State Trooper kit) and I would need another four boxes of Greatswords

Woah, those pikes are HUGE!!!

I dont like the new captain with "fencer's pose" tbh. Even if he is using that pose I doubt it would work with a bloody 2 handed sword (then again im no swordsmen, what do I know? )

I know what you mean about your unit of halberdiers Boreas Got the same deal with my own unit of halberdiers (got 45 of them though, half painted) and they generally dont dissapoint I just send them towards to many uphill battles

Thanks! My Halberdiers always tend to end up where the fight is thickest... They usually die to a man, but only after killing many (if not all) of the enemy. My regular opponents have learned to fear and, if at all possible, avoid them... Usually, that only leads to being charged by my horde of Greatswords

As a fellow greatswords-to-halberdier user, I both empathise with your wallet and congratulate you on an awesome unit! The pikemen look great too.

The captain pose is indeed a proper defensive stance for using a greatsword. That particular pose give you reach and presents a narrow profile for your enemy trying to hit you. Easy to block/parry an incoming attack. It effectively gives you a wall of steel durectly in front of you.

Thanks! It's indeed a pity the Greatswords are so expensive, but it's a choice I would make again, and again, and again... Great explanation on the pose, thanks!

Wait its an defensive pose? how would that work? Wouldnt the huge and weighty weapon slow you down inmensly?

Huge blades like that are incredibly balanced (they need to be) so I think a skilled bladesman should have no problem with that... I, on the other hand, would most likely end up cutting of both my legs...

I don't think the great sword will be extremely heavy otherwise that stance wouldn't exist probably. I've heard it's possible to swim wearing plate armour so holding a big sword at a low angle should be plausible I reckon.
Great spearmen Boreas!

Thanks!

More update coming soon! I should have enough Greatswords left to finish my Halberdiers, so expect pics soon!

Thanks for watching! More updates coming soon! As always, your feedback is greatly appreciated, so please let me know what you think, and, if you're feeling adventurous, feel free to rate my thread...

[eldargal]

A 16th century 'greatsword' will weigh three to four kilograms in general. You can move them just as fast as a one handed sword. They do take skill to use but so does any hand weapon. I really like your pikemen, not sure I could be bothered converting the mfrom Greatswords myself though. Then again, they are so pretty...

[Urgat]

A 16th century 'greatsword' will weigh three to four kilograms in general.

3 or 4 Kg are very wearying when most of those Kg are away from your body. Try and hold a 1.5 meter long bar of even 1 or two Kg by one of its tips for more than one minute They also suffer from important momentum, they're really not meant for the kind of fancy swordplay that mini does. But that's not the point, so who cares? The point in Warhammer is to follow the rule of cool

[Astraeos]

I always go for the rule of cool when making stuff!

[eldargal]

They aren't that tiring, I've been using a zweihander at reenactment (mild steel, 2mm edge so I don;t kill anyone, authentic weight, grip, construction techniques and balance point) since I was seventeen. Yes you need to train with it and actually have some muscle tone but you get used to it. Also the pose on that miniature is right out of one of the Talhoffer fencing manuals for zweihanders. Metal bars of one or two kilograms don't have a balance bought just beyond a well made leather or wood grip. You can do extremely fancy swordplay with them once you know how to use them.

3 or 4 Kg are very wearying when most of those Kg are away from your body. Try and hold a 1.5 meter long bar of even 1 or two Kg by one of its tips for more than one minute They also suffer from important momentum, they're really not meant for the kind of fancy swordplay that mini does. But that's not the point, so who cares? The point in Warhammer is to follow the rule of cool

[Demoulius]

This is turning out to be educational!

Im now pretty curious about your halberdiers Boreas How do you normally support them? Do you give them detachments? What characters (if any) do you attach? And what targets do you send them at?

Ps.Boreas, about the cutting our legs off point. Yea... So would I

[Urgat]

This is turning out to be educational!

It is, but I'll concede and stop the OT here