The Great Oubliette of Shyish, part 10

Valkon of the Forsaken Temple, Lord Executioner

In the living world executioners are tasked with the ending of life, often by axe stroke or noose. The headsmen of the Mortal Realms who knowingly slay the innocent as well as the guilty attract the gaze of Nagash, and upon death are remade into the spectral forms of Lord Executioners. The same is true for those that enjoy their work too much, and Valkron was one such executioner. He was the headsman for a religious order, but an impious and gloating one. He was not one of the order’s faithful but he happily took their coin and did their grim work. He regularly taunted his victims, chiding them cruelly in the moments before ending their lives.

He now bears a massive decapitating axe, with which Nagash has charged him to slay heroes, champions, kings and anyone who defies the law of Nagash, all the while harangued by the spirits of the innocent souls he cut down during life – souls who ironically protect the Executioner from danger, not out of kindness, but so he can never escape the executioner's bloodthirsty work.

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Grimghast Reapers

In life, those who were to become Grimghast Reapers were arch plotters and schemers - careful and meticulous killers. They planned and plotted, worrying over every facet of the illicit deeds that they committed. All took great pains to see that no blood would fall upon their hands, for the deaths were brought about through whispered lies, poison or the employment of mercenaries. In death, Nagash has seen fit to punish such souls with everlasting bloodshed in the most frenzied and obvious manner possible Blindfolded with strips of sanctified shrouds, Grimghast Reapers cannot see, not even with the witch-sight granted other spirit forms. This is part of their curse to keep them in a state of eternal rage.

Armed with slasher scythes, Grimghast Reapers are indiscriminate killers. They never cease in their long sweeping strokes that mercilessly cut down the enemy a rank at a time, and they never tire. Like horrible clockwork figures, they endlessly repeat their deadly shearing strikes. The grim spectres move quickly, hovering down to attack, but doing so with jarring motions that are antithetical to the graceful movements of the living. They seem to start and stop, travelling in convulsive bursts, yet they are fast for all that.

The champions of the Grimghast Reapers are known as Extollers of Shyish. Once spiritual leaders that spoke out in life against Nagash, they are now harbingers of death. Each bears a massive bell - a death knell - whose sombre toll strikes to honour the Supreme Master of Death. The sound rings especially true when the great bell batters the flesh of the living - the resulting resonance is so disturbing that it can shake a mortal's soul loose from their physical form.

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More Nighthaunt models from Mortal Realms magazine for the Great Oubliette!

Just the 5 Glaivewraiths, from Mortal Realms issue 24, left to paint, but I now have pretty much everything I need to play through the Glymmsforge Catacombs solo AoS campaign (with a few minor changes), to represent the Cleavermaw's search for the Adm'rul in the Great Oubliette. I don't have a Knight of Shrouds but I think I'll just re-roll that result if it comes up!

The Great Oubliette of Shyish, part 9

The Myrmourn Banshees have a diabolical hunger, for they feast solely upon magic. Once, these women were practitioners of magic and seekers of eldritch knowledge, but in their studies of lore they failed to pay proper respect to Nagash Upon their demise, Nagash decided that since in life they desired magic so much, they should continue that way in the afterlife and they are now cursed to agonisingly consume the magic of others. No enemy spell is safe from the ravenous spirits, and they haunt the Mortal Realms in search of arcane energies to consume. Myrmourn Banshees are drawn to magic as carrion are drawn to the dead, and such is their bitterness toward life that any mortal creature in their way is likely to receive a swift jab from their cursed chill daggers.

Wrapped in tattered robes and funeral shrouds, Myrmourn Banshees have lost the ability to use their physical senses, and can now only detect the magic that they crave and the living creatures that they jealously detest. An opposing wizard has little chance of successfully casting spells near a large enough pack of Myrmourn Banshees, for they will simply devour incantations before they can have any effect. The sudden infusion of arcane energies causes the lithe spectres to gleam with fell power - especially their chill daggers - though it does nothing to sate their greed for more magic.

More Nighthaunt models from Mortal Realms magazine for the Great Oubliette! I decided to reverse my normal Nighthaunt colour-transition for the Banshees, so they are whiter at the top and darker blue-green at the bottom. Again mostly using Contrast paints and just a little traditional highlighting. If I ever make a Lady Olynder I will use the same scheme for her.

I have to say though, I really love the bases of the easy-to-build Nighthaunt models. They are so characterful and detailed!

I messed up the assembly on a couple of them and there are horrible gaps. That's what you get for rushing.

 

I also just received another back-issue of Mortal Realms from eBay: issue 24. So now I have a Lord Executioner, 4 Grimghast Reapers and 5 Glaivewraith Stalkers on my desk to paint next. Once they are all painted I will have everything I need to play through the Glymmsforge Catacombs solo AoS campaign (with a few minor changes), to represent the Cleavermaw's search for the Adm'rul in the Great Oubliette.

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Kaptain Mogrum could feel the magic rushing through the Oubliette's cold streets and dingy avenues like a raging ocean tide. It was almost overwhelming in intensity - far beyond anything he had experienced in the months in his newly-unlocked life as a shaman. He was unsure if his magical sensitivity was increasing or if it was the power within Nagash's dungeon itself, but he didn't like it either way. He almost didn't need to listen to Uzzog's aetheric compass directions now, he just knew which way the tide was flowing.

Burlok Damminsson and the Reckless Endrineers, part 1

Burlok Damminson, son of Dammin Burlokson, son of Burlok Damminson, son of Dammin Burlokson, son of Burlok Damminson, son of Dammin Burlokson, son of Burlok Damminson, son of Dammin Burlokson, son of ...

It's a strong family tradition going back to before the Age of Myth.

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As soon as I saw the 2020 Christmas model from GW I started planning an AoS version of Burlok Damminson. I have never really been "into" Dwarfs and while I like the idea of the Kharadron Overlords a lot, I wasn't keen on any of the character models, so I didn't consider them as a force for me. But the new "Jakkob Bugmansson" is such a great model I couldn't resist it.

Back in the "Age of Lead" I had the start of a Dwarf force that never really got any further than purchasing three blister packs and gluing them into their bases: it was Burlok Damminson and 6 Thunderers. 

So now I'm going to reproduce them as a Kharadron Warcry warband. I used a Datasmith powerfist (from the Kastalan Robots kit) for Burlok's BIONIC left arm (the barrel is the aether endrin powering it) and a very old Dwarf Warrior's hammer instead of his pint.

The Reckless Endrineers:

An Arkanaut Captain, 5 Thunderers with Aethershot Rifles, and an Endrinrigger with an Aethermatic Volley Gun is just under 1000 points in Warcry.

I used Space Wolf heads instead of the masked helmets. The neck joints needed more work than I'd hoped but I think they match the look of the helmetless Kharadron in the Battletome art quite nicely. I have also heard a lot of bad reports about the flying stands, so I have improvised something from my bits box instead - I think it's from a Coven Throne kit?

The Great Oubliette of Shyish, part 8

The orruk pirates' footsteps echoed on the stone stairs as they descended, deeper into the Great Oubliette. Mogrum muttered to himself and Lost Uzzog nervously fiddled with his aetheric compass.

Mausoleum stacked upon mausoleum, upon mausoleum towered either side of them, crumbling stonework carved into the grim motifs of death. Stunted dead trees clung to the walls and roadsides, forming silhouettes like twisted gnarled fingers. A gloomy green ghostlight cast deep shadows in the crypt doorways and tomb entrances. A thick mist swirled through the grave-markers and columns around them. It curled and drifted on an unfelt breeze.

The Cleavermaws were subdued - they re-checked the priming of their heavy pistols and loosened the swords at their belts. Strange noises echoed along the empty streets - the clank of chains, the wails of lost souls, the hiss of shifting dry leaves. Their lanterns hardly made any difference to the shadows. They could all feel that something was coming.

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I managed to get hold of a Temple of Skulls (thanks Joe!) and immediately set about covering the Chaos start with flagstones to make it look more at home in the Harrowmark or the Great Oubliette. Some plasti-card and texture paint and a very fast paint job later and it is ready!

I undercoated it Chaos Black spray, then zenithal base coated it with Mechanicus Standard Grey. I dry-brushed the entire thing with Ushabti Bone. Then blocked in the "earth" areas with Steel Legion Drab, stone areas got washed with Athonian Camoshade at the bottom and Nuln Oil over the rest. The following day the wash was dry and I drybrushed with Ushabti Bone again, concentrating on the Steel Legion Drab areas most. I picked out the skulls with Wraithbone and painted them with Skeleton Horde. I glued on patches of dead grass flock and some piles of dead leaves then varnished the whole thing.

It takes up a BIG chunk of a Warcry board!