This month has all been about Dungeon Saga, by Mantic Games.
I recently picked the game up (along with the Adventurers Companion expansion) and quickly burned through all of the miniatures in the box.
There’s also plenty cool dungeon furniture included, so I’ve slapped some paint on those pieces too.
The standard of boxed game miniatures comes in for some (justified) criticism at times, but I was seriously impressed with these. They were a lot of fun to paint. Here’s my full write-up on working through them all.
The Adventurers Companion supplement gives you the freedom to create your own characters, parties, and stories.
These minis are predominantly designed for Oathsworn’s Burrows & Badgers game.
They’re full of character, and a joy to paint.
I selected each of these anthropomorphic warriors to replace the four original heroes in the Dungeon Saga box. Here’s my full write-up on that.
So that’s the bulk of my work this month. I’m now looking to get back to finishing off my retro Chaos Warrior warband before the end of the year.
What about you? What have you been up to recently? As always, feel free to post your own links and updates in the comments section below. I’d love to take a look.
Alright so there are no badgers in my party, but I am of course making reference to Burrows & Badgers by Oathsworn Miniatures. They’re the company behind these lovely little furries.
I’d been dying to buy more stuff from Oathsworn for a while now and this seemed like the ideal project. First up, I replaced the Human Barbarian with this hardy looking anthropomorphic rat. I’ve named him Stinky Bob – there’s a plant theme here, for some reason.
Sir Velburch (say it aloud) is a proud looking Squirrel Knight. He replaces the Dwarf Warrior.
Chickweed is my Mouse Ranger, replacing the Elf Ranger. He’s heard a rumour that the dungeons he’ll be looting are a lot like the ones found in Elder Scrolls: Oblivion – jam-packed with lots of cheese wheels.
Out goes the Human Mage, in comes the Hare Mage. Her name is Rosa Rugosa, and she’s a prickly one.
Godspeed my bold adventurers. Delve forth and kill skeleton minions and stuff. Perhaps I’ll find a vet miniature to act as an Apothecary if things get tough down there.
My quest for a dungeon crawler miniatures game recently led me to pick up Dungeon Saga, by Mantic Games. I’m a big fan of Mantic’s rulesets, in particular, Kings of War. The clincher for me was seeing that it was written by Jake Thornton, a name I saw frequently as a kid leafing through the pages of White Dwarf.
Like anyone else of my generation, HeroQuest was one of the first games to really draw me into this hobby. Obviously, this is a heavy influence behind Dungeon Saga, but we have here a game in its own rights. I’ve played some of the early scenarios and it’s a lot of fun.
I also bought the Adventurers Companion expansion which lets you create your own heroes, design your own campaigns, and play co-op mode.
The miniatures look really good, especially for a boxed game. I painted them all up in a couple of weeks using a quick contrast, wash, and drybrush technique.
Some of the miniatures are an obvious homage to HeroQuest, whilst others – like the zombie trolls – are totally unique.
The heroes have been good to learn the ropes with, but I’m currently working on creating my own unique party. I’ll be talking about that in a future post.
I heard recently that HeroQuest was coming back. However, with Dungeon Saga and the Adventurers Companion I feel I’ve got all the tools I need to scratch those dungeon crawl itches.
It’s taken me a while to get to some of the smaller, more esoteric stuff though. This time around, we’re taking a look at some Games Workshop receipts from 1995-1998.
I’d found an old wallet in one of the boxes, and these were tucked away inside. A bizarre thing to keep, I’ll admit. But quite a nostalgic find, and fun to look back at all the purchases, as well as the pricing.
In 1995 I was obsessed with Orcs & Goblins. By the 97/98 period though, I was putting some serious effort into collecting the shiny new Lizardmen forces.
I was still flighty with my buying, though. I can see I was picking up undead and Chaos Space Marine stuff too. I’ve always been more of a collector and (fledgling) painter than a gamer. If I liked the look of something, I always added it to my “to-buy” list.
Trips to GW as a kid were rare because there wasn’t one anywhere near where I lived. I’d usually get to go a day trip there after a birthday so I could spend the paper that fell out of the various cards I’d received. I’d have a list drawn up of what I was going to buy at least 6 months in advance. This was done by pouring over the pages of my White Dwarf collection. These lists probably changed on a weekly basis, too…
Again, if you fancy a look at some of the other stuff I’d recovered, check out my Space Wolves, my Lizardemen, and my Undead!
The end of October sees Bedroom Battlefields celebrate its first birthday. Who knew that one year ago, when this humble blog was launched, it’d go on to become one of the most influential voices in the tabletop miniature hobby?
I mean, I didn’t, because that hasn’t actually happened. But as one of the few folks who does read this thing, I salute you!
Anyway – what did I get done this month. A decent amount of stuff, as it happens.
So I’ve spent the past couple of months researching ‘dungeon crawler’ games, and finally settled on Mantic’s Dungeon Saga (and expansion pack, The Adventurers Companion). As you’ll see, I’ve tentatively started to splash some paint on the miniatures, too.
I found an old Space Marine miniature from my recently unearthed childhood collection, and I gave him a lick of paint. I hadn’t painted a Space Marine since about 1997.
The Terminator minis will be up against these Soviet Heavies from Konflikt ’47. Again, I went for a quick and simple paintjob, but they’ve turned out alright.
I could never go a month without painting something by Knightmare Miniatures. This Chaos Champion has just eaten a very hot curry.
If that’s what his head looks like, can you imagine his… no, let’s not go there eh…
Another restored childhood mini was this GW Warhammer 40k Imperial Assassin. Just a guy, in Lycra, who likes to kill stuff from a great distance. Very impressive, mate.
Finally, I completed a warband of goblin archers (again, by Knightmare). These were good fun to paint, and relatively quick to get through.
So that’s the fruits of my labour for the month of October 2020. What about you? Painted more stuff? Possibly. Made a better job of it? Definitely. Stick your links and/or updates in the comments section below and give us a wee look.
Not content with working on my Retro Chaos Warrior warband, I’ve been putting together a goblin archers warband too.
Greenskins were my first love. It goes back to the first hobby related product I ever picked up – a deck of ‘Goblinoids’ Citadel Combat Cards in the very early 90s.
As someone who’s spilt a lot of green paint on a lot of different carpets, I decided to push my luck and tempt the fates by picking up these little guys. They’re from the excellent Knightmare Miniatures’ Green Skin Wars range.
I’m not sure if they were sculpted by Kev ‘Goblin King’ Adams, who I know does a fair bit of work for them. But they certainly have a classic Oldhammer aesthetic.
They were a lot of fun to paint. Nothing too complicated, but each model had enough variety and unique character to keep things interesting.
I’ve housed them in a movement tray from Warbases. I find these ones work really well for little warbands of archers.
So now it’s back to finishing the second half of my Chaos Warrior warband, and once they’re done, I have a herd of Beastmen who’re raring to get some paint splashed on them.
If you like these miniatures, you can pick them up from Knightmare. No affiliation here, I’m just a big fan, and regular customer. I also have a roundup of Oldhammer-style miniature companies, too, if you’re interested in that type of thing!
Building a Chaos Warrior warband with the classic Oldhammer vibe has been something I’ve wanted to do for a while now.
What finally spurred me into action was publishing a roundup of Oldhammer-style miniature companies. After spending a bit of time browsing all these sites, a purchase or two was inevitable. And so, the Dark Gods came calling (for my wallet).
The first port of call was a company I already know and love – Knightmare Miniatures. This was either my second or third bulky order from them. I picked up a lot of other stuff too, which I’ll be writing about in a future post.
The hulking giant in the gang is Knightmare’s Jötum Icemane (though he’s more of a Redmane for me). There’s a bit of a scale difference between him and some of the miniatures from other companies. This is inevitable when buying from various companies – especially when it comes to the more retro-looking metal stuff.
They could easily pass for Icemane’s sons, proudly dressed up for their first day of Chaos Warrior school.
Back to Knightmare, here’s Mallüs Bloodaxe. I still consider myself a very limited and early-stage painter, but I’m quite happy with these guys. I got a lot of great painting tips in the Oldhammer Community and managed to try out a few new techniques.
The final finished miniature, for now, is Knightmare’s superbly named “Chaos Warrior 14”. A name that strikers fear into hearts, from Albion to Far Cathay.
Most recently completed and added to the fray, are these 5 Chaos Foot Knights from Mirliton, bought via Campaign Game Miniatures.
They are quite small miniatures, but mounting them on the plastic bases raised their height a bit.
On hindsight, I’ll actually be puling Jötum Icemane out the regiment to use him as an individual Hero or Champion instead. He’s just a bit too big (and slightly different) than the rest. I’ve replaced him with an old Citadel purchase off Ebay.
I’ve talked a bit on here before about playing in pre-created storyworlds versus building your own. This time around, I’d like to dip into something I’ve been working on in the sci-fi genre.
Grimdark fantasy will always be my favourite sandbox to game in. But as a 90s GW kid, I do have a lot of fascination with the 40k universe. That said, I’ve really no interest in collecting a 40k army (or, playing 40k, for that matter).
In order to get my own sci-fi wargaming fix, I decided to start tentatively developing my own storyworld. I’m a big fan of using whatever miniatures appeal to me, rather than sticking to the collection of a particular manufacturer or game. I recently did a roundup of miniature agnostic games that let you use any minis. For sci-fi stuff, I really like Rogue Planet and Mutants & Death Ray Guns. Check out the link there for more on those.
So in my own fledgling sci-fi universe, I’m imagining a world ruled by a corrupt corporate dictatorship, facing down a long-running workers revolt. Cliché? Probably. But it’s a setting with lots of tension and conflict opportunities – as well as opportunities to use some really cool looking miniatures.
The main rank and file troops are made up of iconic Terminator endoskeletons from River Horse Games, and Soviet Heavy Infantry from Warlord Games’ Konflikt ’47. The former representing the cold mechanical killers of the state, the latter being the rebellious worker’s movement known as The Rhizome.
Some of my original 90s miniatures have been pulled into this storyworld. Pious 40k loudmouth Redemptor Kyrinov has been primed to become leader of the state’s terror-inducing Inquisition. He’s backed up by two Practicals (yup, I read a lot of Joe Abercrombie) who were originally Warmonger Miniatures’ Plague Apothecaries.
Another old 90s piece was this Imperial Assassin. A great miniature with a lot of character. I figured he could join the side of the rebels. Sidenote – I always wondered just how much time it takes him to make a kill, given that the skin has already rotted from the bones of his last one. Unless he carries that skull around with him to use as a little stool?
I originally bought a box of plastic Necrons from GW to play the role of the robotic state killers. However, I thought they were absolutely horrendous to assemble, and looked a bit goofy, too. I then discovered the endoskeleton miniatures from Terminator Genesys and thought they were perfect for the job. These were tricky to purchase, but I got lucky on Ebay. I promptly moved those ridiculous Necrons on whilst I was at it, too.
Finally (for now), here’s another fellow from the mid 90s. He’s a Space Marine Captain who looks like he’s lived a hard life, and he’ll be representing the state.
Overall, it’s a small collection at this stage, but there’s already the scope for an entertaining skirmish game. I’ll continue to add to both factions over time, as and when I see things that I like. I’m particularly interested in miniatures with an ‘oldhammer’ aesthetic.
One of the big positives of keeping a productivity blog is looking back at how much you’ve achieved over the past month. Obviously that swings both ways, and some months I’ll reflect and think “is that it?”. But September has been quite fruitful for me.
I did this trio of Chaos baddies. The beastman and archer were old Battlemasters miniatures. The multi-limbed champion is by Knightmare Miniatures.
I’m always banging on about the Oldhammer aesthetic, and that prompted me to do a roundup of Oldhammer Miniature Companies I’m aware of.
Javvo the Productive – Chaos Multitasker
Another company with a great old school aesthetic that I like to buy from, are Midlam Miniatures.
I needed some additional fighters for my village militia units. More on that a bit further on.
Oathsworn are another miniature company I’m a big fan of. Here’s a Starling Rogue that I painted up.
This Plague Apothecary (from Warmonger) is a miniature I’ve had for a while, and finally got round to slapping some paint on it. I’m trying to get better at big smooth flat areas (like capes and coats).
I’m not 100% happy with it, but practice and progress beats perfection every time.
This Lovecraftian horror is another Midlam miniature. A really cool little figure.
In terrain news, I found this standing stone I’d “made” as a kid (circa 1995). I very nearly threw it out, but then decided to give it some TLC.
A bit of a zenithal priming and some Citadel contrast paint had it looking much better in no time.
Seems to work pretty well on the battlefield, and makes a nice addition to my terrain collection (with added nostalgia factor, too!).
It was a big month for movement trays. I bought a pile of these ‘Infamy Mob’ trays from Warbases.
I like the way they house units that wouldn’t look quite right formed up into neat, organised regiments.
I now have 2 completed village militia units.
These guys are a mixture of goblins and snotlings.
Whilst these are exclusively snotlings. They’re from the old metal blister packs where they were all meant to be based on the same little square, to act as a swarm in Warhammer or 40k.
Here’s the classic Krell miniature leading some modern-day GW skeletons into battle.
And more modern-day GW miniatures – this unit of Chaos Marauders I’d finished up last month. I have 10 more still to paint, and those will form up a second regiment.
And that’s about it. As I say, not a bad month looking back on it. I’m starting some new projects but I’ll save those for my October update. In the meantime, what have you been up to? Fire a comment and a link down into the section below. As ever, I’d love to take a look!
I know there’s a lot of debate around the question “what is Oldhammer?“. I personally feel that it’s just one of those things where you know it when you see it. To me, it’s a certain aesthetic that reminds me of leafing through the pages of White Dwarf as a kid.
In fact, my first point of contact with the hobby back in the day was Citadel Combat Cards. The miniatures on those cards really captivated me. They had bags of character, and a subtle sense of humour. I don’t deny that modern-day GW miniatures are excellent from a technical point of view, but aesthetically, they do nothing for me.
Fortunately, there are more miniature companies out there these days than I’ll ever know of. Many of them create miniatures in what I’d consider as the “Oldhammer aesthetic”. Some even utilise the talents of some of the legendary sculptors who created old school Citadel Miniatures many moons ago.
My Favourite Oldhammer Miniature Companies
One of the first ones I discovered following my return to the hobby after a long exile, was Knightmare Miniatures.
My Chaos Raider Champion, from Knightmare Miniatures
Knightmare have 3 main ranges – Pantheon of Chaos, Green Skin Wars, and Space Raiders. Many of their miniatures are created by legendary sculptors like Kev “The Goblin King” Adams, and Tim Prow. I challenge you to browse their website and not rack up a shopping list in your head that runs into the 3 figures.
Chaos Warrior Warband – A mixture of Knightmare & Ral Partha miniatures
Another company I’ve bought a lot of miniatures from these past couple of years is Midlam.
One of my Midlam Miniatures’ villagers
There’s a diverse range of medieval and fantasy-style miniatures available on Midlam’s website. They too have a range of greenskins by Kev Adams, and I love the stuff created by Josef Ochmann too. The villagers and townsfolk really capture “the pathetic aesthetic” that’s often talked about with fondness in Oldhammer circles.
Mushrooms are on the menu at Checkpoint Miniatures. There’s loads of great stuff available there.
Warmonger Miniatures and The Wargames Foundry are two sister companies I’ll frequently buy from, too. They have a wide scope of figures available, including an ex-Citadel range featuring miniatures previously produced by… well, Citadel, naturally.
I, like every other mortal, have a very finite amount of money and painting time available. I’m well aware that the Oldhammer miniature companies I’ve mentioned here are only the tip of a very large iceberg.
I’ve been asking around for other recommendations so that I can try to list them all in one place. Here’s what’s come up so far. Obviously, I can’t vouch for anyone I haven’t bought from. But there’s a lot of fantastic looking miniatures here and it’s likely all of them will receive my custom at some point in the future.
