Finished Goblin Regiment

 I'm trying to work down my leadpile, and this regiment of goblins has been staring at me waiting to be finished since October. I painted the first dozen back in 2021 as part of the Old World Army Challenge, then came back to them last year to try and round them out to a regiment of useful size for Warhammer: The Old World. I got bogged down last year with seven figures left to go to reach my target of 40 figures. 

Tonight, I finished those last seven figures, giving me a unit of 39 goblins with a full command, accompanied by a shaman. There's still a few shields to paint and affix but overall I'm happy calling them done. The figures are a mix from Knightmare Miniatures, Harlequin/Black Tree Design, and Midlam Miniatures, all sculpted by Goblinmaster Kevin Adams.

My favorite figure in the unit is a bit of an easter egg in the back row - a goblin eating a meat pie (with a rat tail hanging out of it) and apparently burning his tongue on it. 

I've also knocked out a trio of treasure markers - I'm going to be running some demo games of Fistful of Lead on March 8th at my local game store, and I've put together a simple scenario with groups of orcs squabbling over the division of loot following a battle. I'm hoping I can lure a couple people in. I forget where the treasure pile with the shield and chest came from, but the other two are from Reaper Miniatures - and all three have been in my bits box for the better part of a decade. 

Figures Purchased in 2025: 40

Figures Painted in 2025: 47

Progress Report

 The Fireworks Stand itself is completed; I've got Mark himself and a few resin bits I want to glue into the fireworks stand still to complete, but I might leave those for another day.

Correction: I am absolutely leaving those for another day. Why? Because Goblins, that's why. 

Right now, with having just bought a house and making arrangements for insurance, a snowplow service for our driveway for the winter, and a sudden leak in our ceiling that manifested during a thunderstorm last night, I am more or less on Hobby No-Buy for the foreseeable future. I'll replace paints as they run out/dry out and buy some supplies here and there, but no new miniatures or terrain pieces for a while. Fortunately, I have quite the ample "Closet of Opportunity" to pull from. And October is in view, and that means Orctober, meaning I paint some more greenskins for my ongoing Oldhammer Orc & Goblin army. 

And I am drastically short on painted goblins. 20 archers, 10 wolf riders, and a dozen infantry with hand weapons are all I've got to show of the smaller, weedier grots. I've been meaning to get the dozen foot-sloggers bolstered up to a much more robust regiment of 40, and I think now's a perfect time to get those done. 

Here's a shot of the 40-figure movement tray loaded up with painted and unpainted goblins alike to get a sense of the project at hand. Most of these are either Knightmare Miniatures or Black Tree Design/Harlequin, but two figures here are from Midlam Miniatures - and all 40 are from the talented hands of Kev "Goblinmaster" Adams. I even got to include a fun little easter egg to reward sharp-eyed viewers; one of the goblins in the last row has thrust his club through a belt loop and is taking the time to scarf down a meat pie - one that has a rat's tail hanging out of it. 

There is a painted figure in the back row of that photo; he's one of a handful of Black Tree goblins I painted back in 2018, when I first decided I wanted to try building an all-metal Orc & Goblin army, and was still figuring out color schemes and skin tones. I wound up stripping the paint off of all of those the other day and selecting a few to repaint and include in this unit - replacing the figures with spears in the above picture with ones holding clubs or scimitars. 

I also get an extra shaman figure back for use in my army; I'd especially never been happy with the paint job I'd given him back in 2018, so looking forward to doing a better job on him this time around. 

State of the Orc Army, May 2024

 Been a while since I've posted! Haven't done a ton of gaming since March; we're actually moving at the end of the summer, from our current one bedroom apartment into an actual house! In fact, the house I grew up in; my parents are looking to downsize as they get older, so my wife and I are buying their house from them. A lot of my wargaming terrain has already been moved into the basement at the house, just because it's delicate and I didn't want to risk anything breaking if I could help it. My painted miniatures will all be moved over in the coming weeks as well.

In the meantime, I did get my entire Oldhammer orc and goblin army out on the table this past weekend for the six-month muster. 

First things first, here's the entire* army:

So this technically isn't everything that's painted; my 3rd edition Hobgoblin contingent wasn't unpacked for this, and my Doom Diver catapult needs some repairs so it was left off the table this time around. Let's take a closer look:

Some miscellaneous characters; since the last muster I've added Grimgor Ironhide, Black Orc Warboss from Games Workshop, 6th edition WHFB on the left there, and a Heartbreaker Orc Shaman (now available through Ral Partha Europe) on the far right. 

Goblins! I've added a unit of Wolfriders from Warmonger miniatures (foreground) and a wolf chariot (in the back) from GW, as well as a shaman from Old School Miniatures (red hood). Someday soon I should bulk out that regiment of 12 up to...around 40. Maybe 48. 

These are really special. I painted the first 12 of Harboth's Orc Archers from 1987 back in 2021, and finished the remaining 8 (including standard bearer, musician and champion) in January of this year. They all have hand-painted face shields and I freehanded the banner as well. Behind them you can see one of my two 25-strong Orc regiments.

"The Old Guard" is 35-strong, consisting of orcs released between 1985 and 1996; a mix of Citadel, Marauder, Heartbreaker, Alternative Armies, maybe some I'm forgetting.

My Boar Boyz, from Knightmare Miniatures; have done a couple weapon swaps on these, including making the standard bearer.

Up front are my Black Orcs; these are "Barnorsk Great Orcs" from Black Tree Design, and the first figures I painted for this army. I have another 10 to add to them, and I'll be redoing shields. Also probably redoing the standard bearer, replacing the cast standard pole with a 4" steel pin and a new paper flag. Behind them is my second 25-man orc unit.

Trolls are from Satyr Art Studio originally; the molds were sold to Troll Soup Miniatures but I don't know if they're still in production; they're marked sold out every time I check the site. Next to them is a Warmonger Orc carrying a siege gun, which I'll be using as a Rock Lobber.

I have no idea if they'll ever make it on the table for a game, but I do still love the "Black Fire Boyz" - a group of orcs that have started wearing Imperial uniforms stripped from fallen foes and imitating pike tactics. 

And finally the baggage train; again, not something that'll ever see use past 3rd edition games (should those ever happen for me), but a characterful and fun addition. 

So that's it for now, minus the units I mentioned above. 

What's next?

I did recently score a complete set of the 2002 version of Ruglud's Armored Orcs, sculpted by Brian Nelson during the 6th edition era. These were kind of a "White Whale" for me - the issue of White Dwarf they were introduced in was one of the first issues I had as a teenager entering the hobby, and every greenskins army list I wrote up back then included them as a choice. Those are on my painting table right now. 

I have a bunch of chariots, more goblins, more black orcs, a unit of Night Goblins to do...

Really the biggest thing I should do is magnetize all these bases. I have 3D printed movement trays to adapt these base sizes to Warhammer: The Old World and I really should get magnets and steel squares so I can take these to a game without spending an hour ranking everyone up at the table.

State of the Orc Army - Memorial Day 2023

 Afternoon all, today is a federal holiday in the United States and so I had the day off work. Having gotten quite a bit of work done on my Oldhammer Orc project this month, I decided to unpack everything and get it on the table - see what I've done since the last review, and get a sense of what I want to add. Not to toot my own horn too hard here, but I'm honestly impressed to see what I've done so far:

All total, that's 115 Orcs, 47 Goblins, 15 Hobgoblins, 4 Trolls, 5 "Hobhounds," 5 Boars and 6 Wolves. A unit-by-unit breakdown (mostly) follows:

A unit of Goblin Wolf Riders with bows, joined by a Goblin Big Boss. A second unit of these is in my project box, waiting to be assembled and painted.

Harboth's Orc Archers, a classic regiment from 1987. I still need to do shields for them, and I have a large number of these in my closet that I could strip 30-year old enamel paints off and paint up if I so desired. Behind them is a Doom Diver catapult, ready to fling goblins across the battlefield. 

Da Red Bastids tribe, with a unit of Bog Trolls behind them. Da Bastids are done, I have four unpainted trolls in my project box awaiting painting.

The Black Fire Boyz, a unit of orcs that have begun wearing stolen Averland uniforms and imitating pike and shotte tactics. This unit is complete - I don't want to paint more puff and slash.

The first regiment painted back in 2019, these Black Orcs will be expanded out to 15 and given new shields. Behind them is Mighty Epigruel's Slop 'n' Go Chuck Wagon. I wish baggage trains had persisted in WHFB past 3rd edition. 

The Kingbreakers, my second block of 25 orcs. 

Some characters - a classic Orc Boar Boy, an Orc Commander from Knightmare Miniatures, an Orc Shaman and an early 2000s Games Workshop Savage Orc Shaman. Behind them are a block of Goblin Archers. The orc shaman's staff has a crack on the shaft, and I'm concerned it's going to snap off right above his hand. I've tried wicking some superglue into the crack to bond it, but if that proves to not be enough I'll replace it with a skull just above his hand - turning the staff into a shorter walking stick. 

A unit of Knightmare Miniatures' goblins up front, and behind them an Orc chariot converted from a Foundry Beastman chariot, and in the back "The Old Guard," my Orc Big'uns regiment (joined by the Battle Standard Bearer). I have enough goblins, from a couple manufacturers, rattling around in a box to where I could bulk this unit out to 40, maybe even almost 50 if I really wanted to, but it's not the highest priority.

The Old Guard are all sculpts first released between 1985 and 1996, mostly Citadel, but there are a few Heartbreaker figures in there as well. I've got 19 figures painted, and it will be bulked up to a 36-figure block. I've got more Citadel and Heartbreaker, as well as some Marauder and Alternative Armies figures in the project box waiting to be cleaned, based and painted; I think I still need to buy just 3 more figures to complete the unit. 

My Hobgoblin Mercenary Contingent, not fieldable in any edition of Warhammer Fantasy Battles more recent than 3rd. I've got a dozen Mourngul Renegades, along with a Shaman and a Contingent Commander riding a Temple Dog (represented by a Reaper Krung Beast). In front, a Hobgoblin Beastmaster drives a herd of Hobhounds (represented by Knightmare Gnashers) before him. 

A better look at the Baggage Train. Part of me wants to add a couple more wagons (a torturer's cart and maybe a mobile shrine to Gork and/or Mork), but again, not a very high priority. 

So what's left to add?

There's a couple additional units I want to add:

• 10 Orc Boar Riders. I collected these and made a few conversions (a standard bearer, musician, and a couple of weapon swaps), and they've been sitting primed and ready to go waiting for me to get a storage case to put them in afterwards. I've got the case now so these might be next on the table.
• Another unit of five Goblin Wolf Riders, plus a Boss. I have these in the project box, I just need to get a Boss figure.
• 15 Savage Orcs, to be fielded with the Savage Orc Shaman seen above attached. I've got 13 of the Mark Bedford-sculpted Savage Orcs from 2000, a few of which need some stripping, including a full command. Just need to collect two more. 
• A Rock Lobber - this will be proxied with a Foundry/Warmonger "Mercenary Great Orc" carrying a gigantic medieval firearm (the "Orquebus"), surrounded by a crew of goblins ready to clean and reload between shots. This is already in my project box, though I might still add a Warmonger "Orcling" holding a telescope as a spotter. 
• Mangler Squig. I don't know if I'll ever play 8th edition WHFB, which introduced this unit, but I have the Knightmare "Giant Gnasher" and I'm looking forward to making a diorama base for it. 
  

And a couple units that need expansion:

• Another 5 Black Orcs painted, plus shields. I've got two in my project box, I just need to pick up three more. Shields will be the kite-shaped face shields from Foundry/Warmonger. 
• At least two more Trolls painted.
• 17 more Orcs for the Old Guard. I think I've got 14 in my project box, so I'll need to source three more.
   

 This project has given me a lot of joy since I started it in 2019, and also a lot to think about. One thing I've noticed in social media spaces devoted to miniature painting and wargaming, as well as in the language used to market products to us, is an emphasis on "spend less time painting" and "get [y]our army on the table faster." Faster, faster, faster - always faster! Does 21st century life not move fast enough already?

I've absolutely and categorically rejected this messaging. Being thoughtful and methodical in every aspect of this project has been the key to my enjoyment. Browsing manufacturers' websites, supporting small businesses, and taking the time to base coat, wash, highlight every figure...I have an army that is entirely my own, painted in my own style. I've gotten faster at it through dint of practice, rather than using tools and techniques designed to speed up the process. 

Something I've seen a lot of among people playing the latest edition of Warhammer 40K or Age of Sigmar is buying an army, speed painting it, playing with it for a season, then selling it to pay for next year's army. And that's just not for me; in ten years' time I expect to still be admiring this army in a lit display case in my home. It's been an investment in my own happiness and honestly, my health (I had my annual physical last week, and I attribute my improved blood pressure to spending less time on social media and more time painting orcs), and I'm far richer for having taken the route I did with them.

Merry Christmas and State of the Orc Army

 Merry Christmas everyone, I hope it's a safe, healthy holiday for you all. 

I took the opportunity to get the kitchen table cleared off, a 3'x3' battle mat unrolled, and rather than playing a game, I set up my entire Orc & Goblin army. I've been working on this army off and on since 2020, most notably in the 4th and 5th annual Old World Army Challenges.

I am hoping to take an expanded version of this army to Da Boyz GT in 2023 for 8th Edition Warhammer Fantasy Battles. I have a pretty good idea of what I want to see happen with this army in terms of enlarging it, but I wanted to make sure I took stock of what I had first.

First up, here's the whole army:

That's 90 Orcs, 31 Goblins, 14 Hobgoblins, 4 Trolls, 5 Boars, 6 Wolves and 1 Krung Beast. It's kind of wild to realize how much I've already done.

 

First up is the newest finished unit, a squad of five Goblin Wolfboyz with bows, with an attached Goblin Big Boss. These are from Knightmare Miniatures and are phenomenally characterful sculpts; the wolf the Big Boss is riding is actually from Warmonger, as I'd accidentally snapped the ankles on the sixth Knightmare wolf. I'll be adding a second squad of Wolfboyz with bows in 2023.

Next, we have six Goblin archers, mostly Knightmare but there is one Black Tree Designs figure in there. I have a bunch of Warmonger and Black Tree archers to paint and add to this unit; it's not a huge priority because I'm not anticipating fielding this regiment in November, but I'm happy to paint them regardless.

While we're on goblins, here's a dozen Goblins and three Goblin bosses from Knightmare. I have a ton of unpainted Black Tree goblins I'll be adding to this regiment. Ultimate goal is to get it up to 40 goblins. A Knightmare Orc Shaman is visible behind the goblins.

Harboth's Orc Archers, with Harboth. I have a dozen painted here, and have a box of maybe 20 more that I could strip and repaint if I wanted. I have a special fondness for these guys - they were released just weeks after I was born. Behind them, next to the mounted commander, is my current Battle Standard Bearer for the army, with a crowned skull and crossed swords mounted on some bound-together polearms. He may ultimately find his way into a unit and be replaced as the BSB.

"Dese Lads Ova 'Ere," 1 dozen Orc Warriors from Warmonger. This unit will be expanded to 25 this year. I love the tuba player, and the banner that just bafflingly says "Eat Yer Beans" is a perennial favorite of anyone who sees it. I've got an Orc crouching with his hands over his ears coming from Warmonger in the next couple weeks who I'm hoping will let me move the musician inwards from the edge of the line.

"Dem Lads Ova Dere," another dozen Warmonger orcs that will again be bolstered to 25 in the coming weeks. The "Foot of Gork" banner was my first attempt at doing shading and highlighting on a flat surface. The foot is traced off the Monty Python's Flying Circus foot. Behind them are four Bog Trolls from Troll Soup; I received another four yesterday in the mail. I might pick up another four later on, so I can field two units of six. I'm a big fan of the one picking his nose, with a nosepicking "Orcling" from Warmonger on his base.

"The Black Fire Boyz" are more art project than planned part of the army; 15 Warmonger "Mercenary Orcs" in landsknecht garb with spears. I like the idea of a band of orcs aping Empire battlefield tactics and style, but I really don't want to keep doing puff-and-slash after these 15, so I won't be expanding this unit.

"The Old Guard" - these are my Orc Big'uns, a mix of Citadel/GW and Heartbreaker Miniatures originally released between 1985 and 1995. I've got some more Heartbreaker figures on the way, and will be scrounging through ebay and various buy-and-sell forums to expand this regiment further. I think the ultimate plan will be 38 Big'uns, with the army battle standard bearer and maybe the general attached to the unit. 

10 "Barnorsk Great Orcs" from Harlequin, remolded and reissued by Black Tree Designs a couple years ago. Buying and painting these was what sparked this whole army project; I think I want to go back and remove their citadel shields, trim the pegs and replace them with sculpted face shields from Warmonger. And maybe expand the regiment; I see myself using these as Black Orcs in WHFB. They're a pain in the ass to try and rank up, incidentally.

 

6th edition WHFB Goblin Doom Diver; I originally painted this up as a proxy 3rd edition Orc Stone Thrower (since goblins are about as smart as stones), hence the orc crew. I like the guy shading his eyes best.

Epigruel's Slop 'n' Go Chuck-Wagon. I painted this up as a baggage train in OWAC IV after finishing 1000 points of 3rd edition greenskins. The wagon and cauldron are 3D printed, the cooks, guard and boar are all Warmonger. There's a Warlord Games "Landsknecht Casualty" in the back of the wagon, waiting his turn in the pot. Obviously this is just a flavorful, fun accessory, and probably won't be making an appearance on any battlefields.

Some commanding officers; the boar chariot is a converted Warmonger Beastman chariot, with a new orc crew added. The orc in the puff-and-slash making a rude gesture was my general for OWAC IV. On the right is a classic Citadel/GW boar boy (with a shield from Knightmare), and on the left is a much larger mounted Orc Commander from Knightmare. I've been encouraged to field a general on foot, and I recognize the limitations of mounting my commander in a chariot, but I'm really tempted to put the Knightmare orc in command of the whole army, maybe attached to the unit of boar boyz I have primed and awaiting paint. 

Last but not least, we have a Hobgoblin Mercenary Contingent for 3rd edition; 12 Mourngul Renegades (I have three more to prime and paint), a commander on a Temple Dog (a Reaper Miniatures "Krung Beast" I sculpted a saddle on), and a beastmaster in need of some Hobhounds. I could use the hobgoblins to bulk out an orc regiment in 8th edition, but otherwise they might stay home.

So what's next?

First and foremost, I need to bulk out my Big'uns and my two mobs of Warmonger Boyz, along with my goblin regiment. I've got more Warmonger figures on the way, and need to sort out the goblins I have. 

More trolls. I've got four unpainted ones here, and may order another 4 to field two units of six.

Add a second Wolfboyz unit.

I have 10 Orc Boar Boyz to paint, all from Knightmare Miniatures; several of them were converted with weapon swaps, and I converted a standard bearer and musician. 

War machines will be a big addition as well; I have one bolt thrower half-painted and intend to add two more, as well as a proper Rock Lobba catapult. Two Goblin Wolf Chariots might be called for as well. 

I've been encouraged to field a Mangler Squig in 8th edition; I've got Knightmare's Giant Gnasher that will work perfectly as such.

OWAC-Bound and Warming Up

 

This year I'll be taking part in the fourth Old World Army Challenge, using it as an impetus to get a good start on my Orc and Goblins army project. I've built a straightforward, no-frills 1000 point list, using what I have on hand and planning a few strategic purchases from Warmonger Miniatures and Knightmare Miniatures, that should be comfortably doable within the six months of the challenge, and might possibly end up with a few extras getting painted as well, depending how things go.

To my great glee, my friend Neil has decided to build an Averlander force in parallel to my greenskins, which means once things get better on a virus front, he and I will be able to play Warhammer 3rd edition...an edition neither one of us is old enough to have experienced firsthand during its heyday. 

That will begin January 1st, and in the meantime, I decided to warm up by finishing some figures I started a year ago. These are ten "Barnorsk Great Orcs," originally released by Harlequin Miniatures circa 1996 and recently rereleased by Black Tree Design. I picked these up from the Indiegogo campaign Black Tree ran and they're kind of what catalyzed Project Greenskins for me. Getting them cleaned up, based and ranked made me decide I wanted a metal army, with as few duplicate sculpts as possible, and as many sculpted by Kev Adams as I could get my hands on. 

I'd gotten everything but the wood, leather, brass and details finished a year ago; I redid their skintones, as the highlights were too high-contrast for my liking, and then finished up the rest and touched up the few spots where the paint had been scraped off during their year in a box in the closet with some goblins and a Frostgrave warband.

The shields are some classic Warhammer shields I'd gotten through one of the Oldhammer Facebook groups, and I did them with brush-on primer after sticking them to a piece of cardboard for stability. Drawing inspiration from classic 'Eavy Metal examples from the late '80s and early '90s, especially studio painter Colin Dixon's work, I painted gruesome little snaggletoothed faces on each shield and did a bigger version on a piece of paper for the banner. I've done paper banners before (including for my Averlander Mordheim band two years ago), but this is definitely the most complex yet. Good practice for the OWAC, since I've got two units of Orcs that will be getting similar.

And now, the picture dump: