The cult of the shattered shield

Hi everyone,

Over the following weeks I will be uploading my entire possessed warband I'm currently painting here (that is, if I don't decide to go paint something else first which is in fact rather likely). The warband will consist partially of old GW possessed models, and partially of converted 40k chaos cultists. Anyway, here is the first model:

Siebrecht 'overkill' Dachs:
When the comet hit Mordheim, many of the city's prisons collapsed. While many criminals lost their lives in the collapse, a fair number made it out alive to wreak further havoc upon the citizens of Mordheim. One amongst their number was Siebrecht Dachs. Siebrecht lost his memory during the escape, as a fair portion of the roof came crashing down on his head. In his demented mind, he thinks himself to be a captured norsii warlord, ready to bring destruction in the name of the gods of chaos.
In his devotion, he sought out the fabled Shadowlord. When he opened his left eye to snatch a glimpse of his lord, the shadowlord got furious. No mortal was worthy of laying eyes upon his holiness. As a punishment, Siebrecht's was cursed to have his eye bleed for the rest of his life. In his twisted mind, he saw this as a blessing and smeared the blood from the red orb onto his shoulder, in the shape of the eight-pointed star of chaos. Mildly impressed (for a pathetic weakling mortal), the Shadowlord sensed that Siebrecht might yet be of some purpose to him, and from the center of the bloodied symbol grew a third arm, said to remain there as long as he renews the eight-pointed star every day.
With this blessing, Siebrecht Dachs amassed a small band of followers, known as the Blades of Slaughter.

Note: the pictures look rather glossy and dirty; this has more to do with the photo that with my admittedly rather poor painting skills.

Next up: the Blades of Slaughter, four henchmen with two one-handed weapons (two Mordheim models and two converted 40k models.

COOL background story with an equally cool mini to match. Siebrecht is a BEAUTIFULLY modeled & painted piece...love the Bloody Star. VERY WELL DONE!   

Nice background story and a good beginning on the warband. Keep it coming.

Yes! I'd like to see more of these guys.

Thanks for the kind comments, everyone!

These are the next four models of the warband: the Blades of Slaughter.

There is no escape from Chaos. Even before the comet hit Mordheim, there were many cults of various sizes around. The Blades of Slaughter were one of them. Although still followers of Chaos Undivided, the Blades of Slaughter were more violent than most Chaos cults, and many of the cult's members regard Khorne above the other Chaos gods. When the comet hit Mordheim, the Blades were amongst the first to reveal themselves. Although they revelled in the ensuing slaughter, it was not without heavy losses, amongst which was the cult leader. Because of this, the cult soon broke up into small splinter groups, of which most were either destroyed by the vengeful remnants of the militia or absorbed by larger cults. Some of them, however, found a new chosen champion to follow, and so did this band. It is only because Siebrecht, in his twisted mind, regards the Magister as a demi-god that he can keep the Blades from turning on the rest of the warband or departing from it.

Converted chaos cultist. Cut off hand, relocated it and gave him a Tomb King flail. Has a nasty tendency of getting out of focus all the time. Don't really like the way it was painted, but I just can't seem to get it right. Might put some more time in him when the rest of the models are done.

Original Possessed cultist model. Nothing special.

Technically a Magister model, but because I found a more suitable model he was demoted.

Another converted 40k cultist. Replaced his pistol with a sword. Has a small gas tank on his back cleverly repainted as a bedroll.

And a group shot.

Next up: Heinz 'venomtail' Rechner the mutant. Guess what his mutation will be...

The colors may be classic, but the brushwork & conversions make the Evil Guys uniquely your own. VERY WELL DONE!   

I like 'em. While the original metal models have a charm all their own, it's always cool to see kitbashed models for a unique look and interpretation.

Good work on the evil ones. The mix of plastic and classic models works well.

Thanks again for the kind comments, everyone!

I present to you the next mutant in my warband: Heinz 'venomtail' Rechner. Again a converted 40k model (I don't convert the classic models). I first was planning to remove his gas mask, but then I decided I could do something cool with it instead... Warning: quite a lot of fluff here

The gods seemed to mock him at every opportunity. Heinz Rechner was a very unfortunate man indeed. During his youth, he was plagued with accidents and trouble at every step. Despite this he worked his way to the top, always remaining pious and hard-working. In the end his hard work paid off, and ultimately he was living a happy life, owning a zoo in Mordheim and having a loving wife and a pair of children. His devotion to the gods had finally paid off...
...or so it seemed for less than a year. The continuous stream of accidents having dissipated, he went about his daily business with increasingly less caution. One day, when he took his wife and kids to the market, he casually leaned on a wooden bar supporting the balcony of an old house. The pole appeared to be rotten, and with a cracking sound the bar broke in two and the stone balcony came crashing down. He could jump aside quickly enough to witness his wife and children getting crushed by the falling stone.
That was the final drop. He fell to his knees and cursed the gods in every way he knew until he was all out of breath and finally noticed the disapproving stares of the public around him. A band of militia came walking up to him and unceremoniously dragged him along and hurled him out of the city. It was that day, crying in the woods, that he took his first step down the path of Chaos. Yet the gods were not done with him. Begging day after day for better fortune than the gods of the Empire had granted him, he was 'rewarded' with a hideous mutation, of which the irony wasn't lost on him. For his years of loyal duty as a zoo-keeper, his body started to mutate until his face was a hideous mix of different animals and a spiked, poison-dripping tail had grown from his back. The gods seemed to mock him at every opportunity...

I decided not to go with the traditional colours, here. I personally think a sickly green is more befitting of mutations than the traditional pink/purple.

However, that was not the end of his story. After the comet hit Mordheim, he could walk the streets of the city once more, and started venting the rage of his banishment upon the innocent citizens of Mordheim. Soon this lone warrior was noticed by cultists of Chaos, who saw this broken man's mutation as a blessing and started taking his orders. In honour of his mutation, they named themselves the Stings of Poison and joined his killing rampage. The gods had blessed him at last!

Next up: the Stings of Poison (four Chaos cultists, two with spears and two with spears and shields)

Bonus: the reward of one virtual pat on the back shall be handed to the first person to recognise what I used to make the tail.

While I may have some reservations about the style/cut of his coat, he is a FINE conversion & BEAUTIFULLY painted...I really like your choice of colors. GREAT WORK!   

...Erm should there be an pictures in this thread, because I can't see any...

Do these work for you?

Spoiler:

You might have to cross-reference them with the text for a bit, but they should work. Hope you like them!

EDIT: put in spoiler to give everyone's scroll wheel some rest

Nope the browser just has the spinny wheel indefinately

That's weird. Works fine on my computer. They look great btw.

You didn't have the img /img codes for the images. They should be visible & VERY WELL DONE now.  

@maxxev have you tried using another browser? Maybe switching to Firefox/Chrome (or even IE) will solve the problem...

Regarding the photo's, I personally think they are just a bit too close, because all the little flaws become visible at such a short distance. Having said that, it does help with noticing what points should get more attention, and in the end I might even see some difference between the first and last model I painted!

Here's my planning for the further models:
- 4 Spearmen (2 metal, 2 plastic, 50% done)
- Possessed (metal)
- Magister (plastic sect Anarkus leader)
- 3 Darksouls (2 metal, 1 plastic)
- Possessed (plastic tyranid model OR metal possessed model, depending on whether or not I win that auction )
- Beastmen (as soon as I can find 3 reasonably-priced beastmen)

Hi, i did try a different browser, I can see them now that Deafnala has made the changes thank you.

Looking good also it's good to see another person converting those excellent chaos cultists .

Hi everyone,

I've got some more pictures and fluff to show you today. I finished both the spearmen and the possessed roughly at the same time, so I'll be showing off both today. Somehow the models all look a lot glossier on the photos than they are, but I can't help it.
First of all, my possessed, the very aptly named 'run for the hills!'

Little is known of this slaughtering brute, who quickly gained the nickname (and reputation) of 'run for the hills!' Some claim he is -was- a cultist of Nurgle, who willingly gave a daemon entry into his body so that it could wreak havoc in his name. Others claim he once was a noble knight, who was betrayed by a Chaos-worshipping servant, in return for favour in the eyes of the Chaos gods.
One thing is sure, though: wherever he goes, blood, slaughter and the cry for which he was named follows.



Next: the Stings of Poison!
The Guided were the scourge of the local militia. Their leader, Franz Herzburg, would always launch seemingly random attacks in a pattern only he himself could truly understand, claiming they were sent to him by the gods themselves.
The gods, however, seemed to have a love for irony. And so it was that the Guided found themselves in a dead-end street, when they were set upon by the vengeful remains of the militia. Only those scarcely few members of the cult who did not accompany the party on that fateful day survived. At first they hid themselves, trying to ignore the mockery and laughter directed at them, calling them 'the Misguided'.
The loyalty of a Chaos cultist, however, is easily won. When one day they peeked out of the shuttered windows of their hiding place, they saw Heinz Rechner in a berserk rage, slaughtering militiamen in twos or threes at a time. He was reaching the end of his endurance, however, and so it was that the Guided burst out at last, forming a steel-tipped ring around the mutant. Those who held their ground died. Those who fled died moments later. The Guided had found new guidance! In honour of his blood-and-venom-dripping tail, they decided to shed their old mocked name, and adopted the name 'Stings of Poison' in his honour.

Original chaos cultist. Noticed I forgot to highlight the hands, has been edited in the group shot

Another original cultist. Technically he has a halberd, but as I mistook it for a spear when I first saw it I'm sure my opponent can do the same.

Converted chaos cultist. Nicknamed 'spare model #1' for obvious reasons. His pose was rather difficult to work with, and he looks kind of awkward now, which is exactly why he got his title. I cut of the gun and right hand, replaced the right hand with a hand holding a sponge-stick from the Empire Artillery kit. The tip of the spear is from a lance. I decided to not try to remove the leather gun-strap and fix the shield to it instead.

'spare model #2'. The 15th member of my warband. Instead of cutting off the gas mask breathers (which -knowing myself- would end up looking horrible), I decided not to bother too much and simply explain it as a 'demonic mask'. This model has also suffered the most in the sudden attack of glossy fabulousness... I made a (purposely crude) eight-pointed star on his shield, as a reminder of the not exactly staggering lifetime of equipment that is used in battle daily and stored in wet grass or others less-than-ideal locations (I always like to think that equipment maintenance is included in the lowered profit for having a lot of warband members).

The promised group shot

Next up: Holst von Erchstein, magister

COOL, CREEPY STUFF! Your painting style & color choices fit the Possessed Guys WONDERFULLY...VERY WELL DONE!   

I really like the 'spare model' guys because they are so unique and dynamic looking. I also like that you left the gas masks since they are creepy cultist types.  

As of today, my warband numbers a total of 21 models, as opposed to only 15 before. A combined shopping/converting spree has resulted in three new beastmen (old metal bestigor command, mildly converted), two brethren with maces and bows (converted flagellants) and a strigoi vampire (going to serve as a possessed), making my total warband the following:
- Magister
- Mutant (extra arm)
- Mutant (scorpion tail)
- Possessed (great claw)
- Possessed (great claw, great claw, spines)
- 10 Brethren (4 spear, 4 two one-handed weapons, 2 mace & bow)
- 3 Beastmen (great weapon & heavy armour, great weapon & light armour, sword & axe & light armour)
- 3 Darksouls (2 great weapon & light armour, 1 great weapon)

Also, I got another model finished, so I present you: Holst von Erchstein, Magister.
Like most followers of Chaos (and quite frankly, like most inhabitants of post-comet Mordheim), Holst von Erchstein is insane, yet even by their low standards, he is considered a madman and a lunatic. No-one really knows of his past, or his intentions, but from the few snatches of information the warband has managed to get from him during brief moments of clarity, his story goes as follows:
Once, Holst had great dreams for his future. Born with a talent for magic, his powers grew over his childhood. The College of Magic, however, foolishly failed to notice his talent and refused to give him tuition. So he did what every power-hungry aspiring wizard would do: pledge himself to the gods of Chaos.
Mere weeks later, the comet crashed into Mordheim, and Chaos' power in the area grew. Having hidden himself away, he kept practising the dark incantations and rituals until one day, disaster struck. All of a sudden, the building he was in collapsed, and as he staggered out, dazed by the shock, he found himself positioned in front of a band of darksouls charging across the street at a band of Ostlanders. Somehow, the darksouls felt that Holst was touched by Chaos, and they all charged past him, making him end up facing the band's leader, a Magister of Chaos. The Magister too felt that Holst had power within him, so he offered to take him as his apprentice. Holst then, of course, did the only logical thing to do: stab him in the throat with a knife from his belt, steal his spellbook and take charge of the band of crazed warriors.



And for no particular reason, my desk:


Next up: three darksouls

Great update Captain. Nice choice for a Magister. You are working on a ton of stuff!  

Holst may be THE COOLEST one thus far. The color choice & brushwork are TERRIFIC. SPLENDID WORK!  

DeafNala wrote:

Holst may be THE COOLEST one thus far. The color choice & brushwork are TERRIFIC. SPLENDID WORK!   

Thanks! I think I'll upload some pictures soon comparing the brushwork of the first model to that of the last one, because you can really see the progress I've made (I can, at least )

Von Kurst wrote:

Great update Captain. Nice choice for a Magister. You are working on a ton of stuff!  

Which is also the reason why I don't finish most of my projects: too much cool stuff (as you can see on my desk )
That's the great thing about Mordheim, you can paint four or five models of a certain kind, and then move on onto something else. Much more fun than having to paint blocks of 70 Night Goblins or something...

Some more miniatures finished today: both the darksouls and a possessed. Not really much fluff for these models, but here goes:

The darksouls were the first of Holst's followers. After the 'tragic loss' of their earlier magister, they were quite happy to follow someone who was -at that time- still somewhat sane. Their numbers, however, had dwindled badly as a result of some earlier skirmishes, but the survivors still follow him today, maniacally braving the most fearsome horrors of Mordheim in an unstoppable wave of destruction.

Although I'm fond of the conversion itself, somehow I just couldn't get the paintjob right. Model was holding a heavy bolter (?) first, but I removed it, repositioned the hands and glued an axe inbetween them. Might try repainting it somewhere in the future.

Standard GW darksoul. As they were 'demonic masks', I felt somewhat obliged to make them the same sickly green as my possessed. I was afraid it might look a bit strange, but in the end it worked out rather well.

Another standard darksoul.

And of course a group shot.


In the streets of Mordheim, a young magister was desperately searching for a specific type of possessed to join his warband. Another magister named E. Bay had offered him one, yet he had asked the price of 200 gold crowns for it. While considering this offer, he walked into the local menagerie and found one for the price of only 45 gold crowns.
...AKA I was looking on ebay and found this model for €20,-, then went to my local store and found it in a 50% off box for only €4,50. It's an old strigoi vampire, but they work really well as possessed. This model will be my 'spare possessed', should one of my heroes be mutated into a possessed by the Shadowlord. Hence the lack of an actual background story.

I chose the same colour scheme as I used for my other possessed. Although not necessary, the scheme works and adds a bit of unison to the warband.

Here's my other possessed to show the scale of the model.

Next up: three beastmen, followed by two henchmen and (hopefully) another possessed, and then I'll upload a few group shots of the completed warband.