Steppe By Steppe

Why have a goblin wolf rider, when you could have a hobgoblin wolf rider? And why have any old hobgoblins, when you can have a Dogs of War regiment?

Let slip the Hobs of war!

From the very beginning, I was slicing up my Orcs & Goblins into factions. The first group were my original Savage Orcs; the next batch was themed around the Eastern tribes who fought/rebelled against the Chaos Dwarves (the big hatted variety).

This meant old-style Black Orcs (I must get around the repainting them) and, for some light scouting and eastern flavour, Hobgoblins.

I went with the Dogs of War models, rather than the Chaos Dwarf hobgoblins - what they lack in hook-nosed, pot-bellied charm, they make up for in their brilliant Mongol-themed armour.

Eat your heart out, Khalessi

I was sorely tempted (on account of being an idiot) to tear off all their plastic wolves and rebase them on Fenrisian Wolves - but it seemed an unnecessary expenditure of time and money just to make some light cavalry look better.

Although the real reason for holding back was that the hobgoblins are all sitting rather statically, so the original wolves actually suit them better: a light trot, rather than a mad gallop.

Do wolves even 'gallop'?
Note to self: check Wikipedia

It might have worked if any of my hobgoblins had the 'overarm spear' pose, but it looks like I preferred mine to be carrying spears in an orderly fashion (which does make me want to grab a unit of plastic wolf riders and pose them crazily, just as a contrast between them and the more-disciplined hobgoblins).

The original paint job, as best I can recall, was:

• Flesh: Goblin Green base, Green Ink, Goblin green highlights
• Furs: Chaos Black primer, Shadow Grey highlights
• Armour: Shining Gold base, Chestnut Ink wash, Shining Gold highlights
• Spear hafts: Desert Yellow base, Brown Ink
• Cloth and shields: Scab Red
• Wolves: Chaos Black primer, Shadow Grey highlights

To bring them up to modern standards, I just dirtied up the armour with some Agrax Earthshade, switched the red topknots for Zandri Dust, and rusted up the spear points with Typhus Corrosion/Reza Rust. I had thought I'd be re-doing the shields, but on inspection, I quite like the white claw marks.

Eleven hobgoblins were repaints, but one was painted new.
I can't quite tell which one, so I guess I did a good job matching the paint scheme.

As my oldest goblin unit, this crew had a happy career of dying quickly and running away, although they did have a troubled beginning...

Back in the dark days of communal living, I'd gone to work one morning and left the freshly-painted unit out in the lounge to dry. When I came back, I found my flatmate had inadvertently knocked over the table and sent the regiment sprawling. Being a decent chap, he'd done his best to repair them; however, being a civilian, he wasn't the most adept with a tube of superglue.

I can assure you, Junior Stylus is much better trained.

What was stranger were the places he'd used to hold the gobbos in position while they dried - they weren't all set up on the original table, but placed on bookshelves, kitchen counters. There was even one wolfboy scouting out beneath my laundry basket.

My flatmate wasn't at home when I discovered this carnage, so my evening evolved into some strange scavenger hunt where I was casting around the flat for mutilated hobgoblins crying '"WHAT IS HAPPENING?"

That was my Vietnam.

Anyway, fifteen years later and I think I've managed to move on from it. After all, accidents happen, as I discovered last week, when I was putting the finishing touches on this this unit.

1. Shake off all the loose flock and static grass. The Wolfboyz are placed on the workbench, ready for being photographed.
2. I glance up at my display cabinet, and see that one of the figures is out of alignment.
3. I reach in to adjust it, and in doing so, knock over this top-heavy accident waiting to happen
4. The Miniature of Damocles falls over, its massive banner top detaching and plummeting down upon my waiting Wolfboyz.
5. Mercifully only two casualties: one hobgoblin gets his shield knocked off, the other's wolf loses a tail.
6. I get out my big bottle of plastic glue and affix the tail; then my superglue and reattach the shield (yet again).
7. As I'm inspecting the banner head for damage, I knock over the big bottle of plastic glue, for which I failed to screw the lid back on.
8. My workbench is immediately flooded with plastic glue, which washes over the bases of the two-newly repaired miniatures and loosens the layer of flock and static grass until it's as permanent as a sticker on an apple.
9. As I'm mopping up the glue and prying off the sodden layer of flock, the shield falls off again...

Basically, the Warhammer version of this:

After some more scraping and flocking, all the damage was repaired and no real harm done. the hobgoblins are back up-to-date and ready to throw their hunched backs into the service of the Waaagh!

Before: Grassy Steppe

After: Steppe Up

Don't fret for Oglah Khan - he's still around, he just got promoted, and is awaiting a better steed.