Workbench Update: Isengard

Good morning gamers,

Over the past few months, we’ve been working through our workbench projects on the Forces of Evil I own (since they don’t get their own time in the sun much). With recent journeys to Angmar, Mordor, and Moria, our current travels take us to the tower of Orthanc where Saruman and his minions see some minor repairs and some new arrivals.

Dunlendings: Giving Them Axes

When I first converted Dunlendings up, there wasn’t a distinction between different melee weapons (we hadn’t adopted the Hobbit rules for weapon special strikes). So, the hand type I had the most of were swords . . . so that’s what I used. With the new rules requiring us to pay extra money to get alternate weapon types, I needed to get axes on these guys pronto! For that, I turned to my good mate Centaur and quested through his collection of spare bits, thanks to Warlord Games purchases he’s made in the past.

Some of the axes came from a Warlord Games Saxon Thegn set I got, while some of the other axes came from Centaur (not sure which set). As you can kind of tell from the picture, there are many shapes (and some have cool designs in them). The appearance on the battlefield is stunning and really makes the models stand out!

While Dunlendings don’t have as much to offer (at first view) as Uruk-Hai Scouts (lacking F4 can be a real drag), they are reliable, cheaper models (which can mean that your army grows slightly in size) who start with axes, giving them better flexibility in dealing with odd-Defense models. For those who aren’t convinced Dunlendings are that good of an investment, you should read my thoughts on the matter here.

Uruk-Hai Warriors: Crossbow Conversions

When my good mate Zorro first got started with Isengard, he got a handful of Uruk-Hai Warriors of crossbows and proceeded to introduce most of our friends to “how Isengard works” – use the crossbows to blast holes in enemy lines and then sail in the Berserkers backed by pikes to cut down whatever arrives. Several newer players borrowed his Isengard force for various tournaments and learned the beauty of Isengard crossbows very quickly. While I don’t like the non-maneuverability of these models, having a few is always a good idea.

Here are three Uruk-Hai Warrior conversions from pikemen to crossbowmen (for a while, pikes didn't have a good place in my Isengard army - too many S3 bows plucking them out of fights, occasionally good for ganging up on Cave Trolls). The crossbows came from a Deus Vult Teutonic Infantry set that Centaur bought. At some point, I'll probably add a fourth crossbow to the squad, but don't see getting more than that.

Ugluk

One of the first models Centaur bought to lead his Isengard force (Uruk Scouts and Orc Warriors) was Ugluk and for a while he was the only Isengard player who ran him. Sure, Ugluk was “good,” but in the old LOTR SBG days, Vrasku was the more prized of the two what with a 3+ shoot value with a crossbow and two shots a turn. While my experience with Vrasku has been very mixed (keeping firing lanes is tricky), Ugluk was always a “good” offensive hero (with the potential to be a late-game Stand Fast champion). With Ugluk being the cheapest Heroic Strike option for Isengard (and one of the cheapest Heroic Strike characters in the game), he seemed like a good acquisition to me.

This particular Ugluk model didn't come with a sword, so I gave him a sword from one of my Uruk-Hai Warriors with shields (there were some head-taker threats made too - the Uruk-Hai Warrior was "willing" to part with his weapon). The sword will be replaced sometime in the future (more on that later).

I didn't expect this, but the head of the Orc he killed was the most difficult part of the model to paint, since I didn’t know how much gore I wanted on the model. In the end, I decided to paint the base of his neck red . . . and then put a puddle on the ground . . . and then had some splatter on Ugluk’s leg . . . and sword . . . and side . . . you get the idea.

Lurtz

Now I would like to say that I was a fan of Lurtz BEFORE the rules redo - for proof of that, take a look at my Uruk-Hai Captain overview from January 2013. At the time, Lurtz was "just another named Uruk-Hai Captain" except that he had a bow (not a real threat at range, but had it as an option), a shield (which didn't give him a Defense buff, but DID allow him to shield), and 3 Might points (which was great). Back then, the going thought was that anyone who ran Lurtz should ask his opponent if he was okay with Lurtz dropping his bow at the start of the game (so he could get up to D6 with the shield). I argued against doing that - though I would always say yes if someone asked me if they could do it - because Lurtz's whole benefit to an Isengard team was his flexibility (and why take that away for +1 Defense?).

Well, in the new rules set, Lurtz got a price hike and a TON of great improvements. With 3 Attacks/3 Wounds, he's finally an Isengard Uruk who can stand up against the likes of Shagrat (though I still think Shagrat will win). With a buff up to D6, he can take the shield (optional gear now) and still have good defense, while being able to shield or shoot. Speaking of shooting, the transformation of Orc bows on Uruk-Hai models to Uruk-Hai bows AND the increase of his shoot value to a 3+ makes Lurtz (finally) the range threat he always should have been (especially against Boromir when he's not carrying a shield - hit on 3s, wound on 5s)!

Like Ugluk, this model came without a sword, so we grabbed another sword from another Uruk-Hai Warrior I own.

With Lurtz able to bring a warband of 15 models to the fight (and make sure they arrive wherever you want), Lurtz gives you the potential to position him where he'll do the most damage with either a large pike block of warriors to help him carve through the enemy (perhaps from behind?) OR run 15 Uruk-Hai Scouts that are mobile and toting S3 bows to cut through your opponent at range (perhaps from behind?). Yes, he's phenomenal now . . . but I liked him before he was cool. :)

Mauhur

Updated Mauhur model - new basing job, new sword in the front. He was feeling a little left out since his home-boys were getting their own highlights, so I threw him in here to make him happy.

I converted this Mauhur model a while back (same post that I highlighted with Lurtz above, reposted here) and he had a spare Orc sword back then. Since I'm borrowing swords for both Ugluk and Lurtz, I figured I'd swap his now too. So...there...done.

Basing

I’ve been procrastinating on basing for a while on these guys – all told, it’s pretty simple: brown base, green ring around the base, some black rocks with grey highlights. Nothing fancy. But basing (and then glossing) a ton of models takes a long, LONG time. And while there’s plenty of movies/documentaries to watch while doing it, it’s hard to psyche yourself up to “just do it.” So . . . we did it.

There. Done. Finished. And naturally, after I started putting everyone back in the box, I found five more Uruk-Hai Scouts that didn't have their bases finished. So . . . not done. Heavy sigh . . .

What’s Next?

The only units I want for Isengard beyond what I currently own are Uruk-Hai Scouts (3 more bowmen, 12 melee models, 1 model for a Drummer conversion). Those should be arriving in the mail this week or next week (depends on when the box passes customs). :) Perhaps we’ll get some Warg Riders in the future, but Marauders move almost as quickly, have basically the same Defense, and are Fight 4. Honestly, if I do acquire Warg Riders, it won't be for Isengard - it will be for Mordor/my-son's-Barad-Dur-list, or just for using in my Fellowship of the Ring Journeybook as Wild Wargs.

As you may have noticed if you read carefully, three of my Uruk-Hai Warriors are now without swords. Each of these warriors will claim hammers from some Hobbit Militia that I plan to pick up in the next year or so (I have one now, probably going to just leave the hammer alone until I've got all three though). I did two posts a while back on weapon swaps and sample armies from each list – Uruk-Hai Scouts with maces/hammers got a mention in both posts (I decided to do it with Warriors - I rarely field all 18 of my shield guys anyway). If I do need 18 Uruk-Hai Warriors with shields, I can always find some spare sword blades in the bits drawer and glue them on temporarily, but I doubt that happens.

While we’ve spent the better part of the last two months on our Forces of Evil, we turn our attention back to the Forces of Good as we look at a few new arrivals/finished projects for Minas Tirith (and conveniently, also Numenor). Expect to see this workbench post after our series on shooting - perhaps the only element of the game I like more than magic. Until next time, happy hobbying!