Topic: Could Use Some Inspiration

[Michael W]

After almost 20 years of this hobby, I finally have a functional gaming table.   

I'm now cleaning up my armies and I've run into indecision.  I have a regiment of Greatswords (6e metals) and I'm not sure where they should be from.  My army started as Reikland, but at this point it's most of the southern Empire; I have regiments from Reikland(3), Altdorf(2), Grunburg, Ubersreik, Bögenhafen, Nuln, Wissenland, and Averland, and I have an unpainted regiment scheduled to hail from Middenland.  And I have three regiments of elites - the Foot Reiksguard, Reikland Greatswords, and Carroburg Greatswords.

I'm also reworking my regular State Troops, as some of my regiments are 35, 40, or even 50 models strong; the intent is to reduce them to 24 each, as I don't see myself using huge regiments for Warhammer ever again.  That will give me at least two more regiments of State Troops, including their detachments.

So what do you think?  Should I reconcentrate and add a few more units from existing regions?  Should I aim for a regiment from everywhere?  And where is that third unit of greatswords going to be from?

...and why am I concerned about the size of my units when I'm never going to field even a third of them at once?

[GamesPoet]

Is there a rule system you're planning to play?

[Michael W]

6th Edition, or my homebrew version of it.  As I say, 24 men per parent unit will be plenty, so I'm not worried about unit sizes.  I started Warhammer a little before the Storm of Chaos campaign and the army started as the Imperial relief army, but at this point...I have a lot of Empire, and I've painted a lot of Reikland white, and I'm really up in the air about where I want to go with this army.  It's the first thing people see as far as my display and it's my first wargaming army, so I'm very attached to it, but I'm just not sure where I want to take it from here.

And I like painting metal minis, and these greatswords are (scheduled to be) up next as far as painting projects...but I'm not sure what I want to do with them.  State troops are easy, line units, but I feel like greatswords need a story - a reason why they're there.  Carroburg and Reikland are easy - Reikland is the core of the army.  The Reiksguard Foot is there because the Emperor is.  Why do I have another unit of Greatswords?  Who are they?

[GamesPoet]

How are you planning to use your Empire soldiers?

[Michael W]

So many questions, GP.   

I usually pick and choose a couple of regiments for battle - games are usually around 1800 points, maybe 2250.

All my regiments have stories.  The Dachsburg Swords are my senior line troops, veterans one and all.  The Nuln Spears are defensive fighters, usually deployed alongside heavy artillery but not great against elite enemy troops.  The Ubersreik Halberdiers are a young regiment, aggressive and eager to prove themselves, and hurl themselves against the enemy regardless of the odds.  The Reikland Greatswords are steady veterans, who watch the field with a practiced eye and move to support where their strength is best employed; they pride themselves on being the Emperor's own garrison, and they bear that reputation with great responsibility.  The Wissenlanders are a token regiment, dispatched only when an aide kindly pointed out to Countess Emanuelle that it was the Emperor himself who had ordered her to provide troops; but they know this, and that blotch on their reputation drives the regiment to prove itself in battle.  And so on.  =) 

I like my units to have a little bit of fluff.  I can't just have another "Regiment of Greatswords."  They need to be something.  And, unfortunately, I don't have a lot of great ideas right now.  Or any.  =\

[GamesPoet]

Rush ideas not Paduwan. Flow they will to you.

I'm thinking they could be a mercenary unit.  I would pair them with pikes and handguns.  Perhaps paint in two colors not associated with an Imperial province, like green and orange, blue and orange, black and orange, green and black, or green and purple.

I use blue and orange for a Marienburg Merchant House, a Matorea Merchant Prince, and I am recalling fluff that I have a branch of my Averland family that also uses the those two colors.

And how could I forget these ... for my Sforza Mercenary Family out of Tilea (originally from Tobaro, yet after Ludovico's turning on the Doge with towards the end of the Mercenary War of 2203, they've not been welcomed back into the city) I use green and yellow and purple.

[Michael W]

I hadn't considered mercs.  That definitely opens up some options.  I have some Tileans but they're Alcanti so they don't exactly look similar to the greatswords in terms of equipment or attire.  I'd probably go with Marienburg...not a lot of orange in my army. 

It's an interesting idea.  =)

[Gankom]

I'm always a supporter of Hochland or the various wolf flavoured ones. My own army for a long time was a combined Imperial army joined together to throw the chaos dogs back.

Mercenaries are a good option though as GP points out, and lots of good colour schemes out there to do. Heck could even do an Imperial mercenary.

[Warlord]

Mercenaries can also be entirely multi-coloured. Every man in different colours. Their individuality actually gives them cohesiveness.

[Padre]

... multi-coloured. Every man in different colours. Their individuality actually gives them cohesiveness.

I think so too ...

[Zygmund]

I think the fully armored Greatswords are depicted as elite State Troops and sometimes personal guards of the Electors.

So maybe first check where your Elector or general models come from, and consider if they would have brought their elite unit/personal guard with them.

State Troops usually aren't free roaming mercenaries, but paid and trained by the state. I'd follow this with any Greatswords. Nuln used to be the emperor's city, so they must have old traditions and distinguished units. Of course the same for Averland, which guards the Black Fire Pass.

Just ideas. I'd sumply think which colours I fancy and choose a fitting place based on those. The story of the Carroburg Greatswords vividly shows how distinguished State Troop units may have uniforms different from the provincial norm.

-Z

[Michael W]

Well, my general is from Reikland, but at this point my Empire army is from most of the southern Empire.     He also already has his own greatswords.  And the Carroburg Greatswords.  And the Reiksguard Foot.

The mercenary idea is fun and a Marienburg contingent may be in my future, but after a lot of back-and-forth thought I think I'd rather do that with some non-6E-GW models in order to convey a little bit of the foreign nature.  Could be a fun whole-army project - a couple of regiments, some elites, a little bit of light cavalry, and probably some Dogs of War Duellists as recruited pirates.  Oooooh the elites could be Arabyans - elite foreigners, as some Marienburger merchant doesn't trust local yokels as much as he does well-paid mercenaries.  Maybe 1200 or 1500 points.

So it looks like I'm going with Middenheim for these Greatswords.  I have a couple of 40k armies with a lot of blue but, as it happens, none of my Fantasy armies make much use of the color.  I have a few metal Knights of the White Wolf and Todbringer, and with my army reorganization I'll have a couple of spare regiments that I can do it blue and white to match.  Should be a fun project and give me a little variety.

And then...well, the last of my greenskins, and my chaos forces, and that Terrorgheist, and a few Ushabti, and maybe a Napoleonic French army...oh and that 40k Ork army that I want to build...but THEN the Marienburg mercenary force.

Thanks all for the thoughts.     Very much appreciated!

[wdv331]

I love the little bits of fluff behind each unit Michael, I agree that it really adds character and makes playing them that much more fun!

Will you be posting pictures of your southern provinces army?

[Michael W]

I was thinking about doing that as I base/rebase them.  The only problem is that the army is somewhere in the neighborhood of a thousand models, so I keep finding other projects to do rather than starting that one.  =P