Idol of Gork Project Characters (Part II: The Orcs)

Well, it’s been a little while since I have updated the blog for the Idol of Gork project… the biggest reason is that old thesis chestnut, but another part is that it has been tougher to figure out the orc and goblin characters than the Empire characters.

Part of this I think is my ambivalence towards the ‘Warhammer World’ take on orcs as dim soccer hooligans – a quality which really comes through in the characters which they came up with for the Idol of Gork campaign pack.  On the one hand it makes the orc and goblin army a fun one, but on the other hand I think it detracts somewhat from the grim feel of the setting and makes the orcs and goblins a fair bit less terrifying than such brutal creatures should be.

I think my personal (far from official or ‘canon’, I’m sure) stance on it is that the ‘comic relief orcs’ aspect is a bit of a meta-game in-house joke… a bit like the legendary White Dwarf.  From the perspective of someone hypothetically ‘experiencing’ the Warhammer World, however, there would be none of this quasi-endearing silliness… rather just terror in the face of brutal, hideous, relentless foes.  This ‘grim’ perspective is going to be the one from which I think our story is going to be written… however, for the fun of those of us who are playing out the battles I have kept the ‘meta-game’ personalities in mind when picking models as described below:

Oddgit ‘the peculiar goblin shaman’ (Lvl 3 Night Goblin Shaman Lord on foot)

Oddgit is a night-goblin shaman and as described in the campaign he fits the stereotype well really: he is cowardly but sadistic and cunning and slightly unhinged by the dark magics and mushroom induced visions which he plays around with.  Ideally he hopes to ambush Mannfred’s encampment by the idols, have his minions slit the throats of the humans and make off with the crown of Gork without a fight.

(Model-wise Oddgit will be easy as we have access to a number of night goblin shamans.  The campaign pack provides a picture and I believe a model was released specially for the job, but really any night goblin shaman model will do in a pinch!  Oddgit is potentially the Ironclaw tribe’s most potent spellcaster – I want to keep magic rare so he will be the ONLY Lord level magic user for the orcs and goblins, and even so he will only be level 3.)

Snagga ‘leader of the band…eager for battle’ (Orc boss on boar/chariot?)

We find out very little about Snagga except that he is a brutal and cunning enough orc leader to keep his band of raiders in Rutgar and Frederik’s lands, pillaging enough vulnerable targets to keep his followers’ bloodlust sated but not staying in one place long enough for the Empire forces to overwhelm him in a pitched battle.  Or maybe it’s just luck.

(Model-wise some form of mounted warrior might be the go here, as this raiding force is a mobile one.  This narrows the options down to either a hero on a boar or a hero on a chariot.  On the other hand, Grotfang Skah (see below) is ALSO likely mounted so we have a similar conundrum to the Rutgar/Konrad issue which we faced with the Empire – how to keep heroes differentiated.  Will think on this further.)

Dreg ‘trusted shaman’ (Level 2? Orc shaman on foot)

Dreg is the orc shaman who rises to prominence in the Iron Claw tribe: we are not told why, though if Oddgit is killed or abandons the Ironclaws after failure in scenario 1 there is good reason!  He is sent to enlist the aid of the Itchy Skab tribe and brokers a deal with their shaman, Nazgob.

(Dreg’s model is easy – I think we only have access to one orc (as opposed to goblin) shaman, but he is a great model, and just suits the name perfectly!  He is probably only a level 2 (perhaps even level 1), since we want to keep magic relatively rare and because magical pre-eminence belongs to Oddgit.)

Nazgob ‘shaman of the Itchy Skab tribe’ (Level 1 or 2? Goblin? Shaman)

The shaman of the Itchy Skab tribe who convinces his warlord Uzguz to throw in with the Ironclaw orcs.  We never actually find out if he is an orc or a goblin, or much else about him except that he likes a potent fungal brew.  While I suspect that he was meant to be an orc, I’ve decided he is a goblin shaman to give us variety since we’ve already got a night goblin and orc shaman representative.  Besides, I think my uncle has a great goblin shaman model which seldom gets used.

(Model – ‘Normal’ goblin shaman – see above J )

Uzguz ‘warlord of the Itchy Skabs’ (Orc/Savage Orc/Black Orc? Boss on foot)

We learn very little about Uzguz except that he is the orc warlord of the Itchy Skab tribe, and is convinced by his shaman Nazgob to ally with the Ironclaw against the invaders from the Empire with rumours of hidden treasures in Rutgarberg.  The only other clues we get are that he is somewhat dim (he camps at the wrong Troll Rocks) and mistrustful (he thinks Grotfang may be plotting treachery)…but then, these are not really very unusual traits in an orc!

(Given that Uzguz and his band are attacked while camping we have an excuse to use a model for an orc hero on foot – a nice counterpoint to Snagga and Grotfang.  I had half thought of differentiating the ‘Itchy Skab’ tribe as ‘wild’ – making them primarily savage orcs and spider rider goblins – but this approach seemed to make their list too bland.  Another option is to make Uzguz a Black Orc boss since it seems that Grotfang is NOT a black orc… but ‘Itchy Skab’ doesn’t really sound like a Black Orc tribe’s name!  An orc boss on foot will probably do and there are plenty of them.)

Grotfang Skab ‘…the once mighty warboss of the Iron Claw tribw... Rutgar’s great foe.’  (Orc Lord on Boar)

Yet another brutal orc warlord… but the biggest and meanest of our bunch!  Grotfang is, as you’d expect, violent and unsophisticated, but he has the low cunning leadership ability to mount a serious campaign against Rutgar’s settlers (often claiming his shamans’ plans as his own!).  There is an element of (dim) urgency in Grotfang’s personality… the Ironclaw clan has already been defeated and driven from their lands by Margrave Frederik and he knows that if he is to have any chance of maintaining his rule he needs to dislodge the new settlers under Rutgar and prove himself as war leader again.

(Model – from what I’ve read the ‘official’ model for Grotfang lives on as this orc warboss: http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/catalog/productDetail.jsp?catId=cat440078a&prodId=prod1130263).  I can’t remember if my uncle has this model, but if not I am sure we have plenty of other options.  Bottom line is he is an orc lord mounted on a boar!

Idol of Gork Project Characters (Part 1: The Empire)

When we were planning scenario 1 (‘Da Snatch’) of our ‘Idol of Gork’ 8^th edition campaign, it struck me that we needed an overall list of the characters which would be taking part in the campaign.  This is so that we can make sure that they are distinct, both in terms of character and equipment, so that their stories can develop more fully as the campaign progresses. 

I envision the characters who survive the 1^st scenarios being able to take part in the final scenario and I don’t want a case of ‘Empire captain number 1’, ‘Empire captain number 2’ etc.  It is also important to me that magical items remain rare and unique – so there are NO duplicate magical items in the campaign and characters hang onto the same magical items throughout the campaign (none of this ‘well this banner is useless in an ambush scenario so I’ll change it for this item…).

Anyway, to start ticking off all these bases, here is the roll of Empire characters mentioned in the campaign (text in italics is the fluff taken from the campaign book which I’ve extrapolated on).  There will likely have to be a few more ‘custom’ characters added to cover certain bases (Engineers and Warrior-Priests come to mind).  Orc characters are to follow later.

Scenario 1

Captain Manfred von Bock ‘…a reliable captain.’ (Empire Captain on foot)

Mannfred is a career soldier – likely an illegitimate or younger son of a minor noble lineage or a major merchant house - he has seen many years of campaigning.  Now well into middle-age, Mannfred is an experienced and capable commander, if not a brilliant or imaginative general.

(We’ve picked a model for Mannfred – an infantryman with some great plumes, a pistol and a hammer.  The plumage reflects his wealth and years as a mercenary, his beard shows his age, and he fights on foot).

Scenario 2

Zorn ‘…a wizard crazy enough to accompany them… for certain reasons he would not reveal to them he was keen to set off for a distant land…’ (Wizard Lord (lvl 3) on foot, Lore of Shadows)

Tall and gaunt, Zorn cuts a mysterious figure whose features seem to change unnervingly behind his long, shadowy beard and hood.  One would never pay him any attention at all save when he save when he so desires calls the Winds of Magic about him, and then his power is palpable.  Either way, few ask him any questions…

(I decided Zorn was a shadow wizard based on his name and his hints at ‘shady’ dealings… he get’s my uncle’s Shadow Wizard model, which is the ‘Nicodemus’ model from Mordheim)   

Scenario 3

Konrad ‘a renowned orc hunter who had fought orcs before when posted out in distant Kislev.’ (Empire Captain on horse)

Still a young man, Konrad is a dashing figure whose daring cavalry exploits against greenskins and his adoption of some of the more exotic fashions/customs of Kislev have earned already earned him celebrity status in the court of his native Nuln.

(Not sure about the model here – he definitely should be mounted but I’m not certain that a knightly model is the right fit – especially as scenario 3 technically does not allow knights (which I might change – more on that later).  Will have to have another look at what we have available… I am half thinking of the ‘Valten’ model on horseback, since he looks young but also tough, grizzled and beared from fighting in Kislev..?).  Another option is to make him older and have him as the grand master of the ‘Knights of the Black Wolf’ (my uncle’s ‘Knights of the White Wolf’ adapted for his Nuln themed force).  We’ll see.

Scenario 4

Rutgar ‘…a trueborn noble of the Empire, he had been raised to believe in right and order.’ (Empire Lord on Horseback)

The younger son of the Elector Count of Wissenland, Rutgar has been raised to be his brother’s right-hand man and master the arts of war, achieve outstanding prowess through honourable deeds, and bring honour to his house.  A devout man , Rutgar believes that the foundation of a settlement in the Border Princes is Sigmar’s will and that he has been chosen as the agent of a messianic plan.

(There was an official model for Rutgar which looked a bit like the picture below – but I can’t find it anywhere on eBay at the moment.  He is also a tough one because I think most of the knightly Empire heroes we have available are a fair bit older and, well, more covered in beard and mutton chops.  We might just have to age him as well.  I think whatever we decide here will depend a lot on we do with Konrad (above), because we’ll want to keep them distinct.  Also of interest here is that Empire generals are generally fielded on foot in our games, but Rutgar just seems like a cavalryman to me… we’ll see).

Idol of Gork Army Lists: 'Da Snatch' (Goblins)

So after we figured out the Empire guards deployed to guard the Idols of Gork and Mork, we moved on to plan out the force of goblins which sets out under cover of darkness to steal the Crown of Gork from under their very noses (silly ‘umies).  The Idol of Gork campaign makes only one restriction on the list: goblins only.  What fun!  There are so many crazy options to use with a goblin-only force, which so often don’t get picked when you are looking to build that ‘ultimate’ army.  Our thinking went something like this:

The army was under the command of the Ironclaw orcs’ Night-goblin shaman – the nefarious Oddgit.  We eventually settled on making him a shaman lord since he is the tribe’s premier magic user but kept him at level 3 – the tribe is not at its peak after all!  Oddgit’s plan was to use the cover of darkness to launch a lightning raid, giving his forces the benefit of surprise as well as the added advantage of the Night-goblins’ night vision.  So obviously lots of Night-goblins were required, along with the fun stuff like fanatics, netters, and squigs.  We also used the opportunity to add some Night-goblin archers because it is fitting (snipers with night-vision in the darkness!) and we’ve never taken the opportunity to use them before.  Something else we had never used before (EVER) were a unit of the bog-standard, ‘normal’ goblins on foot and we were excited to bring these out… isn’t it funny when the ‘vanilla’ becomes the exotic?

Given the goblin army and ‘lightning raid’ theme war-machines (read goblin doom-divers) were ruled out, but cavalry was a must: goblin wolf-riders are a classic and we popped in both wolf-chariots as well.  It was the goblin wolf-riders who scouted out the Empire’s occupation of the Idols in the first place.  The Idols are located near some forest, from which some goblin-spider riders have emerged to take part in the blood-letting at Oddgit’s beckoning.  We toyed with the Araknarok given the all goblin theme but decided it limited some of the more unusual options by taking too many of the 1000 pts.

Finally, we decided to put in the goblins’ even smaller cousins, the snotlings!  We’d used the pump wagon once or twice before… I have this hilarious image of twisted little fellows pumping furiously away and it bouncing along crazily through the night, ruining any chance of a completely catching the Empire completely unaware.  But we ran out of points.  We’d never used the snotling swarm bases before though… so those were popped in for added flavour.

And here it is:

1000 point army
Heroes
Oddgit
Night Goblin Great Shaman	140
level 3
Core
40 Night Goblins	120
Standard & Musician	20
Netters and Spears	45
2 fanatics	50
28 Night Goblins	84
Standard & Musician	20
Short bows
2 fanatics	50
20 Goblins	60
Standard & Musician	20
5 Forest Goblin Spider Riders	65
Musician	10
5 Goblin Wolf Riders	50
Musician	10
Spears, short bows & shields	15
Special
2 Goblin Wolf Chariots	100
2 Snotling Swarms	60
Night Goblin Squig Hoppers
3 herders	9
9 Squigs	72
Total	1000

Idol of Gork Army Lists: 'Da Snatch' (Empire)

On Thursday night my uncle and I got together (with the rulebooks!  I’ve been running off memory up till now) to figure out the armies for ‘Da Snatch.’  Remember, our goal here was NOT about building the most effective, or even the most balanced lists (though we’d like the battle not to be a boring walk-over) – we want to have fun playing out a story!

For the Empire all we get to go on from the campaign pack is that the Idols are left under the protection of Manfred von Bock, ‘a reliable captain’, and a band of ‘picked guards.’  Also there were no knights (knights on guard duty? Surely you jest), wizards (none available – they’re sending to the Empire for one to fix the Idols!), or war-machines (too valuable for guard duty) allowed.

For us, guard duty suggested state troops who do what they’re told (like sleep beneath terrifying idols in foul weather) – especially spears and halberds so we started with big units of those.  Handgunners also made sense even though their effectiveness will be limited given the battle takes place at night – THEY don’t know that!

The detachment are just for flavour – gallant young bravos who are full of strut and song and are humoured by the halberdiers even though they tend to monopolize the prettiest girls and the most wine.

What next?  We’ve never really used hunters so we stuck them in – I have this imagining of a hard-bitten, grumbling tracker captain who thinks it’s complete madness to be lying out in the open around accursed idols but whole do his best to make sure there are no nasty surprises out in the wilderness.  It is probably due to his hunters – scouting out in the darkness – that the guarding force manages to get themselves into any sort of ranked defence before the goblins are upon them!

Finally the pistoliers!  Now the young men of the Pistolkorps tend to be nobles either serving some time in the military before taking up family responsibilities or ‘earning their spurs’ before entering a knightly order.  So this lot are entitled, hot-headed, untried in battle, and not keen on the tedium of guard duty.  Unlike the other troops, their interpretation of Von Bock’s orders are ‘flexible’ at best, but they are loyal, and when the enemy turns up they will do their bit (albeit with a lot less swagger).

So: here is (the more or less final - might make a couple of changes) Captain Manfred von Bock’s guard force. 

1000 point army
Heroes
Captain von Bock	60
Full plate armour	6
Shield	2
Pistol	5
Core
29 Halberdiers	174
Full command	30
Shields	29
5 Swordsmen (Detachment)	35
30 Spearmen	150
Full command	30
Shields	30
10 Handgunners	90
Marksman with Hochland long rifle	30
10 Handgunners	90
Marksman with Repeater handgun	20
Special
10 Huntsmen	80
Tracker	10
Musician	10
5 Pistoliers	90
Outrider with repeater pistol	20
Musician	10
Total	1001
	1001

Bretonnian Army Update: Stripping metal models

With a few extra funds freed up I am ready to turn my attention to getting back on track with painting my beloved Bretonnians.  I last had a go in the late 90s I think, and this time I’m determined to stick at it (but then we’ve all heard that one).

First step for me was cleaning some old metal men-at-arms.  I wasn’t too keen with the way I’d tried painting them last time round and wanted to try some of the newer paints which have come out since then.

I know heaps of blogs have tips on cleaning various metals so this isn’t going to be a lesson so much as me getting the chance to have some fun with before and after shots too!  I picked up the info on Pine ‘o clean from my knowledgeable uncle and these guys:

http://www.wargamerau.com/forum/lofiversion/index.php/t25007.html

WARNING: WHAT FOLLOWS APPLIES TO METAL MODELS ONLY!  THE PINE O’ CLEAN LITERALLY MELTED THE PLASTIC BASES ON THESE FELLOWS SO I DOUBT THEY WILL BE GENTLE ON PLASTIC MINIATURES.

Right, without further ado…

1. Picked up some Pine o’ clean – it was about $2.50 (Australian) for half a litre at the supermarket.

2. Had one last look at my models and checked whether I had any second thoughts.  I didn’t.  I’d popped the paint on a bit too thickly and was really struggling to deal with a white undercoat.  Decided it was a lesson well learned and looking forward to another go!

3. Popped the models into a glass jar, immersed them in the Pine o’ Clean, screwed the top on tight and left them overnight.

4. Here they are about 8 hours later.  Got an old toothbrush out, pulled on some rubber gloves, switched on the ventilation and started scrubbing.  FANTASTIC fun, and so satisfying watching it all just come away.  In fact I am a little worried that I might enjoy taking the paint OFF models more than putting it ON them.

5. So I was very impressed with the results, but that awful sprayed on white undercoat was as difficult to take off as it was to cover with the other paints – a lot had come away but I decided to repeat the process.

6. Twelve hours later and hey, presto!  With the exception of the odd bit of paint trapped under the armpits (and really, who wants to go rummaging around in there?).  Ready for undercoating and painting!

Idol of Gork Project Terrain: Idols of Gork and Mork (Concept)

My talented uncle has already been letting his creative juices flow with some ideas for the idols of Gork and Mork, so we’re well ahead of the game already!:

Some thoughts to consider:

·         Ideally the piece will be great fun to make and play with in this scenario, but will also be useful as an ‘Idol of Gork’ item in future WH games.

·         Size.  It should be impressive (a centrepiece) but at the same time (especially if we want it to be reusable) shouldn’t dominate TOO much.  Perhaps there is a way of having it taller than wider?

·         Related to the above is the base… do we fix it to a hill, or just make it so that it can be added to the top of a hill if necessary?  My feeling is the latter, for versatility.

·         Materials.  So far we are thinking polystyrene I think?

Idol of Gork Project: Part 2 'Da Snatch' (Continued)

Ok, to continue the overview of Scenario 1… ‘Da Snatch!’

Deployment:

The Empire is on guard duty and is ambushed by the goblins, so the whole Empire army is deployed first in their deployment zone.  The exception is that the Empire get to deploy one of their units directly in front of the Idols (but not in the goblin’s deployment area), indicating those on guard duty at the moment.

The Goblins are deployed as normal, but only after all of the Empire have been deployed.

A thought I just had here… considering the Empire are guarding and the goblins are attacking, perhaps the Empire should be drawn up in circle/square in the CENTRE of the table with the goblins attacking from all sides?  I can’t remember if there is a scenario like this in the 8^th Rulebook… will have to check.

The Battle:

Turn 1: As night time attackers, the goblins get this honour.

Number of Turns: Idol of Gork suggests 5 but I am going on a limb and suggesting only 4.  Storywise: The goblins attack in the dark of night, to make the most of their Night Goblins vision.  At day-break the goblins will be demoralized by the rising sun and withdraw.  Gamewise: I think the Empire are going to be in all sorts of trouble looking at the armies and the special conditions, and holding them off for 4 turns seems like challenge enough.  This is especially the case if we change the deployment (see above).

Special Rules:

Darkness: All models except for Night Goblins have their shooting to hit rolls modified by -1, to reflect the fighting in the gloom.  Is there a rule in the 8^th Rulebook which covers darkness and could update this?

Eerie Noises:  The Idols of Gork and Mork make eerie noises in the night, unnerving the Empire troops.  All those deployed within X (?) of Gork and Mork suffer -1 to leadership.

Victory or Defeat: Count up victory points after the 4 (5?) rounds are played.  If the game ends in a draw, then the Empire are victorious because the goblins needed to win the battle in order to get hold of the Crown of Gork.  However, if a non-fleeing goblin unit is touching the fallen idol at the end of the battle then the goblins get a sizable points bonus (300?).

If there are any ‘secure the terrain/item’ scenarios in the Warhammer book we could modify a bit from these if it makes sense.

Victory Gains and Losses:

If the Empire win, they deny the Orcs and Goblins the ‘Crown of Gork’ in the final battle.

If the Goblins win, they get the use of the ‘Crown of Gork’ for the final battle.

We might like to put a suitable item in place of the ‘Crown of Gork.’  In game terms I think it is meant to have something to do with leadership.  Ideas from the Orcs and Goblins book?

Idol of Gork Project: Part 2 'Da Snatch'

Ok, so last time I outlined the ‘big picture’ for the Idol of Gork campaign.  There are a few ‘Big Picture’ themes I’d like to return to in a later post, but today I am going to start unpacking my conversion ideas for the first scenario: ‘Da Snatch!’

The background (in brief):

·         In the hills not far from the new settlement of Rutgerburg, Lord Rutger’s men come across two huge hideous stone idols of the greenskin gods Mork and Gork.

·         Wanting to purge his new realm of this blasphemy, Lord Rutger orders the idols pulled down, but some dark enchantment prevents them from being moved without crushing the workmen.

·         Realizing some dark magic is at work, Lord Rutger orders the idols to be left alone, but under guard, and sends messengers on the long road north to consult with the Colleges of Magic and the Cult of Sigmar about how to cleanse the idols.

·         What is unknown to Lord Rutger but is known to the Iron Claw goblin shaman is that the magical ‘Crown of Gork’ was buried beneath the Idol ofGork, and by moving the idol this invaluable artefact can now be recovered.

·         Grotfang Skah, the orc warchief, dispatches a goblin raiding party to make a night attack on the Idol’s guards, snatching the Crown of Gork before Rutger’s men discover it.

The Battle:

The Battlefield:

The Idol of Gork Campaign seems a little contradictory between the map (see above) and the description of the battlefield, and of course will have to be modified to fit standard Warhammer 8^th Edition rules.  These seem to be the key considerations:

·         The Idols of Gork and Mork should be the centre of attention!  This is a fantastic first terrain project, and doubly useful because I think ‘Idol of Gork’ is one of the standard terrain features in Warhammer 8^th Ed, so it will be reusable.  Design ideas for the Idols deserve their own separate post (or three!) so I will move on.

·         The Idols should be the first terrain piece deployed, relatively centrally in the board but should overlap with the Empire army’s deployment zone – they are guarding them after all!  However, they should not be an unreasonable distance from the goblins either.

·         The rest of the battlefield is left to the player’s discretion – they give some examples of other scenery on the map but these seem rather uninspiring to me.

·         One possibility is that the idols of Gork and Mork were discovered in rocky badlands where Rutger’s masons were quarrying stone for his castle in Rutgerburg, so little rocks and outcrops seem to make sense. 

·         Another possibility is to have the area blighted by the dark magic of the orc gods – warped and deadened trees and treacherous bogs seem to be a fitting sacred site for the greenskins!  At this stage I like this option better, because scenario 3 involves very rocky terrain (Troll Rocks) so it will allow for some differentiation.

·         Given the importance of the Idols, both in terms of the game and narrative, something to be decided will be what sort of other ‘special terrain’ is available in this scenario.  I don’t want anything which ‘doesn’t fit’ or overshadows the idols either in story or game terms.  Will have to think about this one.

The Armies: (1000 pts. each)

The Empire:

According to Idol of Gork, the Empire can choose any units except for knights, wizards, war machines, or war altars.  Here are my thoughts:

·         Given how rare the Steamtank, celestial and light orbs (can’t remember the name – mounted wizard orbs?) and war altars are, they should be unavailable to the Empire for the WHOLE CAMPAIGN.  Besides, with the exception of the Steamtank we don’t have access to the models J.

·         No knights makes sense for this battle.  The knightly orders have better things to do than stand guard duty in the middle of nowhere!

·         The way the campaign is written, wizards are only available to the Empire if they win scenario 2 (to come).  However, given the importance of magic in 8^th edition and the fact that the goblins get a shaman, I’m not certain that the Empire won’t be hopelessly outgunned without some magical support.  I will have to think on this one.

·         No cannons makes sense for this battle – they would be too rare and valuable out in the Border Princes to be deployed anywhere but defending Rutgarberg itself!

·         I don’t have the Empire list in front of me at the moment but the units which the Empire would likely use for guard duty might well include lots of state troops (handgunners, halberdiers, spearmen, etc.) and perhaps some foot skirmishers – Free Companies and the like.

·         The Empire gets a captain for this battle: Manfred von Bock.

The Goblins (1000 pts.)

·         The only restriction Idol of Gork places on the goblin army is that it contains no orcs.

·         I like the idea of this force fielding all the variety of the goblins in one go (Goblins, Night Goblins, Fanatics, Wolf Riders, Squigs, Manglers, etc.) along with the good old Snotlings.

·         I was tempted by the idea of the Doom Divers (which are goblin after all!) but have decided against them – they are not mobile enough for an ambush.

·         Idol of Gork has the goblins lead by the Shaman ‘Oddgit’ – not certain about the level he should be given.  He is described as the head shaman of the tribe but doesn’t strike me as being of ‘wizard lord’ level.  And is it feasible to play a level 4 Goblin shaman in 8^th in a 1000 pt army?  (I think it is, but don’t have the book with me and can’t remember)  My decision here will impact on my decision about how much magic the Empire are allowed to field.

Right, that’s enough for now!