Good morning gamers,
The banners are made of some spare wire I found in
my attic – a simple rod with some colored electric tape on the top. The
conversion is easy since their hands are already raised, but I didn’t see a
good reason to give up some perfectly good picks from being used by
front-liners. So, we swapped two swords for those picks (they hand-swaps are in a later picture). We also added some
spears (from a Warlord
Games Saxon Thegns box – that purchase has been a gold mine…) to the
banner-carriers' backs, since you want the model to be able to do something actively in a fight instead of just passively because he's there (I depart from this montra in my Isengard army - more on them in a later update).
The actual spectre
models include a Numenorean in them – so excess Numenoreans make sense as
good spectre models. This is really just a paint job, though I added some gore
where the shield-hole is on the models just to jazz things up a bit (one has a
dagger from the Saxon Thegn set sticking out – couldn’t resist). While I don’t
have as many as I used to, having a few scattered across your army can lend
huge tactical dividends (both in moving models off of objectives and in
wounding high-Defense, low Courage models). Always, always, ALWAYS keep these
guys near Shades/Ringwraiths (preferably both) if you want the most out of them
(and preferably, back them up with Orc spearmen – not as strong a combo as it
used to be, but the higher Fight value is always nice to have).
The chapter from the Felllowship of the Ring
that talks about Barrow-Wights is entitled Fog on the Barrow-Downs – and so,
like the Shade above, I wanted to have an emerging from the fog motif. Once
again, I relied on getting some good cushion fluff to do the job, adding some
gray paint near the base to deepen the color a little.
The other models that I’ve added here to
bolster the army are Wild Wargs. While these blokes won’t cause Terror (like my
Orcs), they do provide mobility at a fraction of the cost of Warg Riders (who
are marginally more resilient, infinitely more terrifying, and far more
flexible because of their wargear options). While Warg Riders would be a
slightly more expensive addition to the army, Wild Wargs provide a nice
stop-gap for now (and besides, I like them). Their bases, however, match my
Moria team (because they used to fight in that army), so their bases didn’t
require as much work as the Barrow-Wights, but did require some re-engineering.
The fog covered most of that though...
Orcs are the main-stay of any Angmar force - being able to grant these guys Terror if you keep your army bonus and have Spirit heroes (Barrow-Wights, Shades, and Ringwraiths) nearby is amazing. While it means they can play a very different kind of game (redeploying and waiting for your opponent to try to charge), Angmar Orcs are blissfully cheap and can be a pain to tag. Even Elven armies (with their obnoxiously high Courage) will find some of their models failing tests - and you can then move cheap Orcs to charge into exposed flanks, harass models that got left behind, or trap models that raced in ahead of their friends.
In our last workbench update (Numenor), I said we'd be going to Mordor next and talking about what's been going on for my Mordor army that I'm building. While I can say that Mordor has seen some work on the workbench, they were quickly eclipsed by my Angmar work. So...today we visit Angmar and see what’s been cooking up to help
one of the weirdest factions in the Lord of the Rings game. While I’ve had some
Ringwraiths, Wild Wargs, and Orc Warriors for a while (and even acquired some
Barrow-Wights), Angmar as a civ has always evaded my attentions. Today changes
all that: we focus hard on getting Angmar up to snuff with some enhancements
that will help them sweep over the Elves and Men that challenge them. Some
weapon swaps/additions will be at work, as will some conversions – lots of fun
to be had, so let’s get to it!
Weapon Swaps: Banners and Picks
If you’re going to run Angmar, you’re limited (for the most
part) to Fight 3. Any army that is limited to Fight 3 will find fighting Fight
4 shield walls very hard to assail – unless you have a banner around. So, we’re
converting up two banners (from two-handed weapon Orc Warriors, of course).
As great as two-handed weapons are on F3/S3/D5 models, I think you get more from a shield, spear, and banner. The shields are still coming, but the banners are ready for use! |
Unit Conversion: Shade
Shades are . . . annoying. While they lack Might/Fate (like Barrow-Wights), their Will store provides the ability to make it hard for nearby foes to win fights for several rounds (eight rounds if you don’t need to spend Will on anything else). If your army crumbles for some reason (shot before they can engage, perhaps), the Will is also a great way to ensure that the Shade sticks around for a turn or two (though if you’re being torn to pieces, that may not matter so much). As such, I wanted a shade - but didn’t want to pay $15-20 to get one . . . so I made my own.
here): PVA to join blocks of polystyrene, some gray paint to cover all the pink, and some wispy fog to surround the entire model. The billowing mist you see is actually made from some spare seat cushion stuffing I referenced in a different post – great addition to the model to make it feel more like a shade.
Unit Conversion: Spectres
Unit Conversion: Spectres
A while back, I had about 10 spectres in my Angmar
contingent (led by a Shade – more on him later). I then allied these guys with
a Mordor army that fielded the Dark Marshal and ten Orc Warriors with shields
and spears. Because of the way the old rules for spears worked, the spear would
give the spectre an additional die with Blades of the Dead (giving you 2 dice
to wound against Courage). With the new rules release (and the inability for
Shades to work with the Dark Marshal without becoming Impossible Allies), I
didn’t see much of a need for spectres (went back down to D5, spears are
resolved on their own stats), but while I was working on my Numenor army, I
found a few guys I didn’t need. So…spectres!
Woozy additions for the army - and more seat cushion fluff! |
Basing: Barrow-Wights and Wild Wargs
There are two models that I actually have the GW products
for that have an important place in my Angmar army: Barrow-Wights and Wild
Wargs. Barrow-Wights are some of the cheapest captains you’ll get (though
unlike most captains, they can’t March your troops). What they really excel at
is turning captain models (or strategic warrior models . . . or occasionally
really BIG monster/hero models) into sleeping rocks. While a hero with Might
can arouse himself from a paralysis-induced slumber pretty quickly (and certain
other models can just get lucky), in general, you can count on Barrow-Wights
sending a few models into a very vulnerable state right before you sweep in
with your army. My Barrow-Wights have been painted for a while, but I haven’t
done anything with their bases until today.
Hey there - want to lie down on a bed made of ancient cursed treasure? It's amazing... |
My dear, beloved Wargs - formerly my fast attack options for Moria, now my fast attack options for Angmar. |
So. Many. Orcs. Well, 32 isn't "so many" I guess, but it's enough to get the job started. |
What’s Next?
As mentioned above, Warg Riders would be nice to get, but
the immediate aims are a Wild Warg Chieftain and 6 more Wild Wargs (for a full Warg pack led by the Wild
Warg Chieftain). These models aren’t just needed for my Angmar army – they’ll
also be needed for the Fellowhship of the Ring campaign book that I own (the
old one that was released by GW over 10 years ago – very fun to play). Besides
that, my son wants me to get Buhrdur, but I don’t think I’m going that route –
more inclined to get another WWC if I need the strength, to be honest. Our next stop will take us to Mordor (serious this time) and see the work that's being done on my Morannon Orcs - not all of them will be Morannons on the tabletop. Curious? Watch this space and happy hobbying!
I've loved running Angmar - not necessarily the most competitive army in the current meta (especially since Courage tests are a problem now, as the shaman lost Fury), but the variety of models they have is just fun.
ReplyDeleteWell, a pure Angmar army just won the ArdaCon Master’s Invitational over the weekend against Aura of Dismay High Elves, so I’m not so sure they aren’t competitive. ;-) The fact that their own average-heartiness orcs gain Terror helps, especially if your opponent is reluctant to try taking courage tests.
DeleteVery nice. FWIW, GW announced over the weekend that they're re-releasing the Twilight Ringwraiths as MTOs this weekend. No pricing info yet, but it should be cheaper than what you can find them for on the secondary market (also dwarf kings, kings of men, and the old metal orcs are coming back). https://www.warhammer-community.com/2019/08/16/ardacon-2019-preview/
ReplyDelete"MTO" = Made to order. Sorry. :) Details in the link!
DeleteDo Twilight Ringwraths have a unit profile anywhere? I love the look of those models, but I guess they're counts-as Shades or Barrow-wights for the time being?
DeleteThey don't have their own profile in any of the main rules books, though it's possible they got an unofficial profile back in a White Dwarf years ago. They get used as spectres/barrow wights a fair bit (I believe Kylie from Australia used 2-3 of them as spectres in her Masters-winning army list), but personally I wouldn't have any issue if you wanted to use them as Ringwraiths instead of the shrouded models. I kind of doubt that a TO would have a problem with them as ringwraiths, either (they are official GW models of Ringwraiths after all), so long as you could differentiate which is which if asked (especially if you're running any of the named wraiths). If the opponent has a Ring Bearer, they seem especially fine (and thematic).
DeletePrior to getting the "normal" Ringwraiths, I used him as a Ringwraith. That actual model is the Twilight Witch-King - and the Witch-King is awesome. I don't think they ever had their own profiles - they were made available so you could have them for a Weathertop scenario or something (because they look cool that way). It doesn't surprise me that they could be used as Shades/Barrow-Wights (what I used mine for).
Delete