[Archive] And now for something completely different

Archive [Archive] Off-Topic Showcase
41

Thommy H:

War Trolls of Khorne







In the deepest dungeons of the Brass Keeps, the Skull Priests of Khorne breed all manner of mutant beasts. The half-Daemon Skull Hounds are the best known, but another of the monstrosities they have unleashed upon the world are the War Trolls of Khorne. Trolls, as a species, are known for both their regenerative abilities and their talent for metabolising anything they eat (and they do eat anything…), which results in the multitude of Trollish breeds that are the scourge of the Warhammer world. War Trolls begin as ‘ordinary’ Trolls, captured when relatively young by the fearless servants of the Skull Priests. They are imprisoned in the Brass Keeps and used as a means of testing the most foolhardy of the Blood God’s Champions. An aspiring Champion may make a pilgrimage to one of the Brass Keeps to test his mettle against their war beasts. Of course, many Champions are found wanting and are eaten alive in the fighting pits. This pleases Khorne, for he cares not whence come the skulls for his Skull Throne. More to the point though, the steady diet of fresh, Chaos-tainted meat has a strange effect on the Trolls. When they regenerate from the numerous wounds they sustain in the pits, their flesh grows back red as blood. The more powerful the Champion slain, the more Daemonic the Trolls become until, eventually, they approach a gargantuan size and their hides are as bright red as arterial blood. They have developed a thirst for blood and for battle and become some of the most dangerous weapons in Khorne’s arsenal: living battering rams for the hosts of the Lord of Battles.

Long ago, I put out a request for Trolls. My plea was answered by Slev who very kindly sent me these completely free of charge. He just wanted them to go to a good home and hopefully I’ve fulfilled that obligation. Painting these models was fun, although I sort of did it in spurts because I was on a bit of a downswing with Warhammer (see my Dark Angels log for what I was doing instead…) but last weekend I put some graft in and got them done. Devlan Mud wash once again proved to be a godsend as it makes pretty much everything look good.

42

dncswlf:

AWESOME!!! great concept… love the color scheme!! I may have to steal that!!!

43

m3lvin:

Those bloodhungry trolls are ace, both paint and fluffwise. :cheers

I’m getting really tempted to start with WoC again,

those old warriors got loads of more character than the new ones.

/melv

44

Xander:

Wow! 7 trolls is quite a gift. I’ve always liked these models.

Excellent work on them! They can double as Lava Trolls. :wink:

45

Nicodemus:

7 trolls is quite a gift. I've always liked these models.

Xander
I agree. A kingly gift! Way to show the rest of us stingy/greedy-hearted Dwarfs up Slev ;P

~N
46

Thommy H:

Well, the story with the free trolls was that Slev sent me a PM shortly after I made my request and said he had these guys. I asked how much he wanted and he said just postage costs, so I think I offered him £10 or something. Anyway, for one reason or another the transaction just didn’t happen - he wanted to send them me first, so I was waiting for them and I guess both of us just sort of forgot about it. No harm done because no money had changed hands or anything.

Fast forward maybe a year and he PMs me out of the blue asking if I still want them. This was just after buying a load of stuff for my Dark Angels and going on holiday and I just didn’t have a lot of spare cash so I politely declined, but then he sent me a message back saying he didn’t want any money, just a good home for them! A week or two later and there I was with seven free trolls.

So all credit to Slev for that. If I’m ever in his neighbourhood, I’ll make it my business to track him down and force him to accept a pint at my expense.

47

Thommy H:

WARNING: if tiny metal models with facsimiles of exposed female breasts offend you, please do not view the images below, as they contain exactly this. I’m thinking of people viewing at work. If they actually offend you for real, you should probably get a life.

Gorewena, Skull Priestess of Khorne and Hexus the Daemon-Troll





The Skull Priests of Khorne preside over the dark rituals of the Blood Good from their impregnable fastnesses in the Chaos Wastes: the Brass Keeps. They are responsible for bringing forth the fiery Daemon hosts of Khorne by making proper sacrifices and deep in the dungeons of these blood-slicked citadels are also bred the legions of monstrous beasts that accompany the warbands dedicated to Khorne. These twin blasphemies rarely intersect, but when they do the results are typically horrific. Such an experiment first birthed the monstrous Skull-Hounds of Khorne, for these beasts are fed exclusively on Daemon flesh, which causes their bodies to be racked by hideous mutations. Few Skull-Hounds live to maturity, but those that do are foul parodies of the canines they once were, their red-hides bursting with razor-sharp spines and their skin sloughing off in great bloody chunks to reveal ghastly skeletal forms that are still capable of moving with frightening speed.

Gorewena was a Skull Priestess with an unusually inventive mind for a follower of Khorne. She observed the rate of attrition inherent in the process of creating Skull-Hounds and wondered if a more robust species might prove more resistant to the warping effects of Daemon flesh. The War Trolls of Khorne are bred by the Skull Priests by allowing them to feed on the raw bodies of Chaos Champions who come to test themselves against the Keeps’ monsters, but even the stupidest Troll will not eat tainted Daemon flesh. Gorewena needed a very special subject for her experiment, and she found it in Hexxus: he was the runt of the latest litter of Trolls born in the dungeons of her Brass Keep, a role which traditionally comes to an abrupt and messy ends when its siblings turn on it and eat it. This is considered a natural part of Troll biology, and encouraged by all good Troll breeders as it makes the rest of the pack stronger. Hexxus was a pathetic, emaciated creature, who had only ever eaten scraps - this was essential to the experiment, for Gorewena wanted her pet to eat Daemon flesh almost from birth. She took Hexxus away from his rowdy siblings and raised him in a pit of his own, periodically throwing him Daemons to satiate his growing hunger. She started with minor imps, gradually working her way through the Daemonic hierarchy until Hexxus was able to kill and eat Bloodletters and even Heralds of Khorne. Hexxus never grew healthily, for Daemon meat is the most tainted of all, but he became strong and dangerous. Like the Skull-Hounds, he found his flesh melding unpredictably, falling off in chunks and leaving his countenance increasingly skeletal. Few even recognise Hexxus as a Troll because of his hideous, undead aspect - he lacks the typical floppy ears and long nose and his face looks more like a leering, emaciated skull. The amazing regenerative powers of Trolls have ensured that Hexxu is stable, after a fashion, for though his body constantly erupts in almost random mutations and his flesh is rent apart by spontaneous tears that cause his guts to spill out, Hexxus has merely to shove everything back into place and let his monstrous metabolism do its work. He is a demented and abused creature, driven insane by long isolation and constantly having to fight terrifying Daemons to survive, but is totally loyal to Gorewena, his cackling mistress.

Gorewena herself is as dangerous as any Skull Priest. Wearing the ceremonial headdress of the Cult of Khorne (and very little else), she rides Hexxus into battle whenever a crusade in the name of the Blood God gathers. From this perch, she is better able to command the creations of the Brass Keep, for all of the monsters fear the reprisals of their cruel masters. To further enhance her abilities, she carries with her one volume of the great Book of Khorne, one of the few religious texts devoted to the Blood God. This multi-tome publication, which in its entirety covers the walls of a room as large as the antechamber of the Temple of Sigmar in Altdorf,  is the only surviving evidence of an ancient pact between Khorne and Tzeentch. These two Chaos Gods, normally at odds, put aside their differences long ago and Tzeentch’s half of the bargain was to use his knowledge of the fates to compile the names of all those individuals who would one day have their skulls heaped at Khorne’s feet. Every single creature killed in the name of Khorne has its name or mark recorded in the Book of Khorne, from the creation of the world to the End Times when the Realm of Chaos finally consumes everything. What Tzeentch gained from this diabolical deal is unknown. The Book of Khorne is especially dreaded by the Dragon Ogres, who can meet death only in battle, and regard it with absolute horror, for it may contain their names - and therefore serve as proof of their mortality. Even the famously independent Shaggoths will show proper obeisance to the bearer of the Book of Khorne.

"Counts as Throgg."

I’ve been searching for a model to serve as my Troll King for a while, and considered quite a few options. I thought about the Heresy Troll (too advanced for my meagre modelling skills), the Gamezone Trolls (looked okay, but I find Gamezone figures hard to track down reliably) and even the new plastic River Trolls (three figures just to get one guy? No thanks). Then, when considering a different project (Shieldmaidens of Khorne - stay tuned), I suddenly remembered this figure. It’s Deth and Taxxis from Hasslefree and I’ve known about it since it came out, but never had any cause to get it. Well, it was one of those moments when you have a great idea and know that it’s just the way to go. So I bought it and, as I expected, it was a wee bit smaller than my regular Trolls. Hasslefree is generally true-28mm scale, so the figures are quite often surprisingly small. In this case though, I could justify it: my Troll would be the runt of the litter, and his unusual appearance (Deth is supposed to be undead…) fits in perfectly with my fluff for the Skull-Hounds. I love any chance to deepen the mythology for my armies, and I’m really getting into the idea of a “Khult of Khorne” with possible Daemon support in the future using the allies rules (or just as an accompanying army). The stuff about the Book of Khorne, by the way, is both to justify the presence of a book on this model (Books for the Book God?) and to explain why “Gorewena’s” Lord of the Monstrous Horde rule would work on Dragon Ogres too, since they don’t breed them in the Brass Keeps. The other good thing about this figure is that I could use it as an Exalted Hero (or even a Sorcerer) on Daemonic Mount if I felt like it.  

Also: boobs.

48

GRNDL:

Hahah, I’m painting up the model of Hasselfree’s “Deth and Taxxis” as we speak!! Its a very striking and beautiful model, IMO. Except I’m going for a more dark/evil Celt feeling for mine.

49

tjub:

Thats a really cool model and a great looking unit!

50

AGPO:

Wow, just goes to show a strong colour scheme can unite any group of models, no matter how different. Hats off on that one! The fluff is pretty awesome too, top work!

51

Thommy H:

The Furious







Krond, also known as Krond the Invincible and Krond the Deathless, is a legend in the Northern Wastes. A Chaos Warrior dedicated to Khorne, he has laid more skulls at the feet of the Blood God’s throne than any other living Champion. However, Krond has never sought any glory beyond the reach of his sword. He seeks only to take skulls, refusing to lead men (waste of good skulls…) or conquer anything he couldn’t slaughter with his own hands (too long to wait for skulls…). For this reason, he has never been gifted with true power, and is content with the respect and fear of the Northmen. When Lord Xavier began to gather the Destroyer Cult, he knew he would need a lieutenant of rare might and he set his mind of the legendary Krond. He heard that Krond’s latest quest was to kill the Black Wyrm of Skraelingvolk and tracked him through the mountains. Krond’s adventure took him across the icy peaks of Norsca, through blizzards and over fjords and glaciers but, in a valley whose walls were coated with black ice, he found the foul beast. Xavier watched from above as Krond battled the Wyrm, eventually strangling it with its own tail and, as he knelt in the ruined carcass, his armour slick with blood and ichor, the Chaos Lord came to him.

Two Champions of Khorne known only one way to great one another and, though Krond had just fought a great battle, he hurled himself at Xavier. The snow was falling, and he could see nothing of his foe, save that he was a warrior of awesome power. Though Xavier was a mighty Chaos Lord, blessed many times over by the Blood God, and Krond had just strangled a foul monster to death, the Champion held his own. He turned aside blow after blow from Xavier’s Axe of Khorne, and dealt him several brutal strikes in return. Finally though, Krond’s stamina began to fail and he made a misstep, slipping backwards on a patch of ooze that leaked from the Black Wyrm’s remains. Xavier struck, hacking open his gorget and then lifting his axe. Krond prepared himself for the inevitable, but Xavier stayed his axe a hair’s breadth from his neck. Neither man spoke for long minutes, until Krond, shaking with indignation roared, “Finish it!”

“No,” Xavier replied calmly, “I have spared your life, and now it belongs to me.”

“Never,” Krond growled, "my life and my sword belong only to Khorne!"

At that moment, Xavier pulled off his helmet, revealing the glowing brand of Khorne on his forehead. "And you shall serve him indeed, mighty Krond - but through me!"

Krond, awed by the Chaos Lord, immediately knelt and swore fealty. He was the first to join Xavier, but not the last, for rumours of Krond’s new allegiance spread, and Chaos Warriors from all the corners of the Shadowlands flocked to join him. The first, who would come to form the core of the Destroyer Cult, were led by Krond and called themselves The Furious. Of all Xavier’s warband, they are the most fanatically devoted to the Blood God.

Anyone who’s taken more than a cursory glance at the 8th Edition of Warhammer will known that this newest version of the game is one that emphasises big units of infantry. In my Warriors of Chaos army, I originally did pretty much the minimum to make it legal - so two units of ten Warriors, essentially. I then expanded in other directions and never had cause to revisit those two units. Well, now ten guys doesn’t cut it any more, so it was high time I expanded. The Furious now number twenty models, which isn’t that huge, but I remember a time when a unit of Chaos Warriors that size would have seemed pointlessly excessive. Not so any more. I got ten more of the classic Warriors from eBay, and they seem to be available in quite decent numbers since everybody hated them so much! Good news for me, as I intend to expand The Hateful too at some point. For now though, this will do nicely.

Since it’s been a while, this is the Destroyer Cult as it now stands:



And, so you don’t think I’m a tease, I’ll also show you my new display cabinets. We recently moved house and we needed to furnish the new place, so this gave us the impetus to start buying some stuff we always wanted, like these two cabinets from Ikea. The only problem is that we’ve already filled them up, so now we need another one!

52

Fequiil:

me loves those trolls:love

53

Hashut’s Blessing:

Excellent fluff and loving the unit in its new size!

If you need some more classics, I believe I have a fair few to spare (although they will need stripping and to be found. Have rough ideas of where they are). I love the models and would use them as Forsaken, but tryong to concentrate on painting stuff, rather than repainting it at this stage.

Keep up the cool and great work, can’t wait to see more (even though I’ve not yet commented, really).

54

Thommy H:

Sure, I can take them off your hands if you want rid of them. PM me the details if you figure out where they are. And thanks for the kind comments, all.

55

AGPO:

I’m in much the same position expanding my units of classics. No sooner had I expanded all the units to be five wide rather than four, but another new edition comes along and I have to expand once again.

56

Hashut’s Blessing:

Thommy H: Sure thing. I have a single one at hand :wink: I believe I have 15 (that are close to hand), which has full command and all are mutated to a larger or lesser extent. In fact, I have some pics on photobucket (links to avoid detracting from your thread): http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/Hashuts_Blessing/Warhammer/ARMY2.jpg

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/Hashuts_Blessing/Warhammer/WUNIT2.jpg

http://i144.photobucket.com/albums/r181/Hashuts_Blessing/Warhammer/WUNIT3.jpg

AGPO: Says it all :wink:

57

Thommy H:

I’ll take 'em as long as you don’t mind me essentially scavenging them for parts…

58

Hashut’s Blessing:

I’ll try to find them and take this to PM when I have done :wink:

59

Thommy H:

The Blood Reavers









The Norse are not known for their horsemanship, and their breeds tend to be rangy, thick-limbed ponies primarily used for carrying loads through the treacherous mountain passes. Nonetheless, there are those Norse Marauders who have found a use for the horse in warfare. Usually, a wealthy Norseman able to afford a warhorse will ride his steed into battle and then dismount to join the shieldwall with his bondsmen. A truly powerful Thegn or Jarl will mount his whole warband thus, giving him unparalleled mobility across the rugged lands - indeed, the Norse use horses on land much as they use ships at sea. Bjorn Bloodbeard is a rich Thegn who was sworn to Ragnar Ragnarson, Jarl of the Aeslings, but was away at war with his riders - the Blood Reavers - when he made his ill-advised assault on Uzkulak that eventually cost him his life and all of his lands. Ragnar’s son, Ulf Ragnarson, eventually persuaded Bjorn to swear fealty to him and together the two began to plot revenge on the Chaos Dwarfs to their immediate east. Ulf’s plan was to ally with the Destroyer Cult, a force of Chaos Warriors sworn to Khorne - another name for the Wolf God worshipped by the Aeslings - who were powerful enough to mount an invasion of the Dark Lands.

However, both bands became caught up in the Storm of Chaos and were induced to travel south with Archaon the Everchosen as part of the great horde of Hrothgar the Blooded. Little did Ulf realise that this had been Xavier Fereur’s plan all along, and that he had designs on a little known barony in southern Bretonnia.

Bjorn Bloodbeard has remained true to his oaths and took his riders to war in The Empire. There he took many skulls for Khorne, but he also learned lessons about warfare. The Blood Reavers saw how cavalry was used by men of the south and began to adopt similar tactics. Norse are no horsemen, but these ones proved the exception as they traded for more vicious mounts from their Kurgan allies, or simply stole Imperial or Bretonnian warhorses from their vanquished foes. Now, the Blood Reavers are a deadly force on the battlefield, and Lord Xavier uses them as scouts, only to call them back when the battle is met, so they can smash into the flanks of the foe, swinging with their deadly flails and hurling their axes - weapons that would once have served them as footsoldiers.

Nitro may recognise these fellows - he very kindly traded me enough horses and bodies to make eight Marauder Horsemen in exchange for a bunch of bucklers from the Thunderer kit. I had to provide heads and weapons myself, but I had a lot left from the Marauders I made a year or two ago. It was harder than I thought it would be, mostly because the Horsemen torsos don’t match up to the Marauder torsos so I had to do a lot of cutting and filing with the arms. The concept with the unit is that they’re infantrymen who normally just ride to battle on their horses, so they’re loaded up with all their gear. They have spare axes (which they throw…), a couple of shields, hunting knives and various other accoutrements. Also note that the musician is a drummer, where cavalry would normally have a horn.

60

ChungEssence:

this topic is TOO HUGE!!

will return to give the fluff a proper read