(Lead) Mountain Musings - "Burrows And Badgers" May 2018

"Burrows & Badgers" WIPs - Toad Mage, Dandy Highwayfox and Green Lizard

This month's themed effort to try and reduce my overwhelming collection of metal, plastic and resin miniatures will be dedicated to the six "Oathsworn Miniatures" I require in order to field my first warband for the company's "Burrows And Badgers" skirmish game. In addition, it'll be my first committed push to actually paint all the figures I bought at this year's "Salute" before I re-attend the ExCel convention centre at Custom House in twelve months time...

Anthropomorphic animals have not previously been a genre of the hobby I've contemplated, but the opportunity to collect both a free miniature and the Scenario: Mouse-Hunt if I bought the tabletop rule-book whilst at the South London Warlords show was too good an opportunity to refuse. The "Oathsworn Miniatures" stall also had a terrific display of models, so as the manufacturers had already sold out of pre-made warbands I simply bought (more than) enough blisters with which to compile my own.

"Burrows & Badgers" WIPs - Sparrow Warrior and Shrew Warrior

Obviously it is still early days for my 'nefarious' force to be battle ready, but I have already worked out my 350 pennies worth of miscreants, and set about basing/priming the dirty half-dozen. For starters, I plan to use the impressively large and pistol-toting Dandy Highwayfox as my gang's leader, Watership Dick, and a bloated Toad Mage as my Morglyn's Fiery Blast firing magic-user.

Filling out my cast of roguish players will be a tiny Shrew Warrior, a wonderfully-feathered Sparrow Warrior, and a particularly venomous Adder Warrior; which doesn't yet appear to be purchasable on the company's website due to being part of their recent "Rogues And Vagabonds" Kickstarter. With the exception of the heavily-armoured poisonous snake (sixty-one Northymbran pennies well spent methinks), these fighters will all be armed with a one-handed weapon and light shield.

Arnulf WIPs - The Blood Reaver now needs just his steel helmet and hand weapons to be finished

One of the highlights of the game is the ability to additionally recruit beasts who "live in far off lands and are only rarely seen..." To that end I have 'splashed out' on a Green Lizard armed with a one-handed weapon and wearing some light armour. I hope to paint the reptile's plate protection in bronze with a patina, to show its deepest dark South American roots.

For those interested in a full review of "Burrows & Badgers" then I'd strong recommend popping over to Simon Quiton's excellent website, "Brummie's Wargaming Blog", where he gives a detailed overview of the game and its extensive range of miniatures.  

Alongside these suitably scaly and furry fiends, I also still need to finish off my remaining Garrek's Reavers for "Warhammer Underworlds: Shadespire". I've still got a couple of the "Games Workshop" Blood Reavers left to paint, but have been making some excellent progress on Arnulf recently so hope to soon have the Khorne Worshippers ready for both the "action-packed combat game", as well as "Age Of Sigmar".