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Initial Thoughts
daemonette, previews of top secret minis and kindly staff make it all worthwhile. Alas, I haven’t been to a
GT since Seattle 2001. With the Mommasboyz geared up and ready to go as the most active and
supportive club this side of Nottingham, however, it’s time to re-enter the fray. When I decided to go to
the upcoming Seattle 2005 GT, it seemed like a good idea to stick with the army I’d been painting and
playing since GT 2001; a slow painter and crummy general, I had finally accumulated enough painted models
and become familiar enough with the Orc list to participate with some pride. On the other had, the boyz were
tired of my weak-ass style of warmongery, and it seemed like a good time for us to take a break from each
other. Besides that, there’s an allure to making a new start, especially since Warhammer had been getting
stale to me lately.
During the last four years, I’ve started and abandoned several armies. Writing up new lists (on paper!) is
one of my favorite aspects of the hobby, and every few months or so I’ll settle on a list and theme that
satisfies for a time, but then loses its luster after I’ve assembled a regiment. A few days ago, with the
Seattle GT a scant five months hence, it was clear that the time to choose a new army, once and for all, had
arrived. Unable to convincingly decide which direction to take, I left the matter to fate and rolled dice. The
dice chose the dusty, tragic Tomb Kings as my next army. Happy with the outcome, I gleefully absorbed
the army book and set about selecting models.
A couple of days later, however, Chris B. considered this turn of events only to convulse queerly and mutter
the response: “Play Chaos.” His notion was sick and crazy, and it stuck. See, Chris trenchantly observed
that my limited strategic skills were well-suited to a “me hit you—hard” infantry army. And the models are
Conan the Barbarian cool and would be a pleasure to paint. In addition, Chaos troops are varied and
expensive, so fewer models could be painted well on a tight schedule. Since June, I’d had a jaundiced eye on
the “Siege Attackers” boxed set down at S&P and picked it up as the ideal backbone of a mortal Chaos
army: two regiments of warriors, one regiment of marauders, one unit of marauder horsemen, one unit of
chaos knights, standard bearer, champion, and a Hell Cannon. Also, I’ve always liked the prospect of
putting together an army “out of the box,” dealing with the limitations therein and expanding on the troops
included to maximize the effectiveness of the army. Ever the good friend, Deke decided that I shouldn’t be
the only wayward son to proceed on this misadventure, and he also turned his back on the caprice of the dice
and chose to play Chaos. We both agreed that turning to the Dark Gods wouldn’t be as scary if we had each
other’s backs. Besides that, since Deke had initially rolled Dwarfs as his next army, we could both indulge
our Chaotic fancies and know that we’d both betrayed the decisions of the dice for the higher cause of
camaraderie. Or so we hope.
As I tuck into the goods and begin planning how to build and paint this army in time for Seattle 2005, I’ve set
a few helpful guidelines to keep me focused and on schedule:
1) *Concentrate on painting, not converting*. Since the Hellcannon is such a mother of a model, I’ll save all
conversion efforts to make this thing the army centerpiece. I’ve drawn up a few ideas for conversion work,
but won’t settle on a plan until I’m ready to give this piece every shred of attention. So it will probably be the
last thing I tackle. Until then, dozens of cool models deserve undivided painting attention.
2) *Don’t worry about originality*. In the past, I’ve fretted this idea into the ground. It’s probably the reason
I’ve started and abandoned so many armies in the past. I’ve been painting long enough that my stuff looks
like my stuff, even when painting familiar or traditional color schemes.
3) *Capitalize on strengths*. I’ve already had to scold myself for worrying too much about the colors I’ll use.
I can work the Citadel metallics to a satisfactory standard, and will stick with these as primary paints for this
army, even though “it’s been done.” Now, I need to concentrate on a visual theme for the army, an emblem
for banners and shields that will tie the different units together. I’m thinking of a version of Harold
Hardratha’s “Land Waster” raven as the central image of the army, with the intention of exploiting a
harsh, Nordic feel for the troops. I enjoy the challenge of creating free-handed banners, so this will be fun.
4) *Once a decision has been made, there’s no turning back*. Speaks for itself. Army theme will
certainly evolve as I paint and play. But once the color is on the model, it stays. No wasteful purchases to
make up for painting or modeling haste. So this guideline might also be defined as: *Take the time—
however much it takes—to do it well*.
5) *When in doubt, ask Chris B*. Also speaks for itself.
Here we go!