They came
south in a red tide, one knot of killers among many beneath the unseen will of
their Marauder King, a name spat with reverence and fear around the fire but
never spoken lightly. This band called themselves the Gorebound, oath-sworn to
Khorne and hungry for the skulls of softer lands. Their furs were stiff with
old blood, their shields hacked from a dozen raids, their laughter edged with
something feral and expectant. Among the three marauder hosts that rode within
the warband, the Gorebound were the most fractious—quick to boast, quicker to
draw steel—but even they knew enough to give space to the ironclad Warriors and
the King’s chosen. There were hierarchies here, written in scars and enforced
in sudden, terminal violence.
At their fore strode Kargun
Red-Spear, Deathbringer of the Gorebound, a broad-shouldered reaver whose
weapon had been hammered from a looted southern pike and reforged into
something brutal and inelegant. He fought from the front ranks on foot,
disdaining the saddle in favour of the crush, where his reach could drag
enemies down into the press. His beard was bound in copper rings taken from
fallen champions, and his eyes burned with a constant, low fury that never
quite found release. Kargun did not waste words; he let the tally of his kills
speak, and none in the tribe could match the quiet, methodical savagery with
which he harvested skulls for the Blood God.
Beside
him marched Hroda Chain-Banner, the standard bearer, dragging aloft a pole
crowned with a snarling brass rune of Khorne, hung with lengths of chain and
skulls that clattered with every step. The banner stank of iron and rot, and
men fought harder beneath it, as though the god’s gaze pressed down through its
crude icon.
The warhorn fell to Skeln
Red-Breath, a scarred marauder whose lungs seemed touched by something unclean.
When he sounded the horn, it was not merely a call to advance—it was a bellow
that clawed at the mind, a sound that drove men to reckless fury or froze them
where they stood. Veins bulged along his neck with every blast, his eyes
rolling white as the warband surged in answer.
Close by lingered Yrsa
Blood-Whisper, the tribe’s shaman, her presence a tolerated blasphemy in a host
that worshipped slaughter above all else. She spoke to the spirits of the slain
and painted her visions in arterial red, guiding the warband toward battles
where the blood would flow thickest. Garruk trusted her only as far as her
visions pleased the god they served.
Behind these figures came the mass
of the marauders themselves—bare-armed killers with axes and flails, their
flesh marked by ritual scars and fresh wounds alike. They fought not as a
disciplined army, but as a tide driven forward by rage and the promise of
worthy death. They marched and bickered alongside the other two marauder bands,
trading insults and threats that sometimes spilled into brief, vicious duels
before discipline—of a sort—reasserted itself. Yet when the Warriors drew near,
all three bands fell silent, their bravado guttering in the shadow of those
towering killers. And when the skies split with the beating of daemonic wings,
even Kargun paused. High above, wreathed in the promise of carnage, soared
Valkia the Bloody, consort of the Blood God, her passage a shriek of brass and
slaughter. The Gorebound fell to their knees or howled her name to the heavens,
exultant and terrified in equal measure. To be seen by her was to be marked,
they believed—either for glory beyond mortal reckoning, or a death so violent
it would echo in the halls of Khorne forever.
*****
I mentioned at the beginning of the year that we had had a few tester games of The Old World and had quite enjoyed the system and wanted to play more regularly, I also mentioned that one of my Hobby Goals for the year was to get at least 1,500 points of Warriors of Chaos finished and up to snuff for the tabletop so our games didn't look so shit all the time.
Well, this is the first part of the ongoing "Lure of the Gods" series I am starting as I catalogue what units I get finished, or detail any particularly noteworthy builds/conversions/etc which I think may be useful to keep track of moving forwards.
So, what have I actually done?
I have started with this unit of eighteen Khorne aligned Marauder Warriors using the Age of Sigmar Bloodreavers as the choice as i had about sixty of them in my collection (I bought up a bunch of cheap first edition starter sets when Age of Sigmar was first released).
There are eighteen Marauders, because there is a Sorceror on foot in the front rank (second from the left)and there will be either an Aspiring Champion or a Battle Standard Bearer in the gap in the front rank.
Seen from above:
Traditionally most Marauder units have been painted with very pale white skin and blonde hair, these are meant to be the Norse Vikings of Warhammer afterall, but I decided I wanted to try the skin tones to utilise the brilliant flesh colours GW produce now.
Bloodreaver Flesh.
Catachan Flesh.
Guilliman Flesh.
The armour plates Re black and highlighted with Leadbelcher, this will become the standard across the entire army, and then each God Favoured section with has splashes of a colour associated with their deity.
And a couple of glamour photos:If you look at the Champions Spear wraps, the talismans on the Sorceror and the various straps and loincloths on the models, the spot colour is Sigvald Burgundy, washed with Earthshade. This gives me a second spot colour which will tie the army together across the different ideas for armour colour I have.
Some closeups of the various ranks:
The Front Rank, with Command and Sorceror:
The Second Rank:
The Third Rank:
The Fourth Rank:
I'll be honest in that I have absolutely no idea if the army I am building will be reasonable on the tabletop.
(Yes it is nice to win, but I'd much rather have a very cool looking army first).
I have a few things coming up for this army soon, so the Lure of the Gods will return.
Until next time, have nice day...
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