Now I quite like the new Midgard rules, and had been fairly busy basing my Mithril Orc army in accordance to their basing. I like the multiple basing, and the idea of having hero miniatures on individual, but more heroic, almost scenic, bases. As a personal rule of thumb I have decided to base Army Commanders (and mounted heroes) on 50mm round bases (when I base some goblins and dwarves I shall add standard bearers, musicians, etc to the bases as well), and dismounted heroes on 40mm bases. I like the room it gives the miniatures. If anyone is unfamiliar with Midgard (which I am still yet to play) a useful link can be found here.
https://mogsymakes.net/midgard/
Anyway, back to the Orcs. Lots of orcs, all being based. Then I take a break, think 'I wonder what else I could base for Midgard?' Then I recall my Eru-Kin army from Diehard Miniatures which had been sitting in a box for years. The Eru-Kin are fantasy/sci-fi amphibians with a passing nod to Citadels pre slotta C32 Slann range, with some interesting additions. So, I got distracted. In fairness I have finished basing the orcs! I have however found myself happily painting a Midgard Eru-Kin army.
Painting wise I have gone for the 1980s Slann look, with lots of gold and a dash of Aztec. As there are more sci-fi elements than the old Slann range, I have tried to create an army which is a blend of sci-fi and fantasy. I like to think of them as perhaps an Old Slann army, a few generations after the collapse of the Warp Gates and the decline of their civilisation, that is still technological to some extent, but things are starting to fall apart. I have not gone for a very precise paint scheme, but for one more suited to the tabletop, although I am still taking care in painting. The miniatures are great fun to paint, and I am also regarding them as a prelude to when I tackle my 1980s Slann army later.
Here is a link to the Eru-kin range, sculpted by Tim Prow:
https://diehardminiatures.com/product-category/eru-kin/
Enjoy :)
Although sold as a sci-fi Tech Mage, he does fit the fantasy aspect of the army nicely. He also has a bit of an Ancient Egyptian or Stargate Goa'uld feel about the sculpt.
These would be classed as Warriors (Heavy Infantry) and are eight to a base. I love how on the multiple basing you can have a lots more differing poses and a more dynamic look. The shields are great too.
These very much have a Stargate feel to them with the staff weapons. As a Midgard unit, these would count as a Skirmishers (Shooters) unit, armed with (equivalent) crossbows.
Next update will be more Eru-Kin as I have already painted more.
Great work Lee, can definitely see the Stargate vibe you mention, but they are unique enough in their own right as well, look forward to seeing more.
ReplyDeleteThank you Dave.
DeleteYou're right, they do have several different influences, but they do have their own unique vibe as well. I have already painted some more and I am part way through some more infantry.
Lovely work! I have a few of them and I find the minis quite lovely. Your paintjob is highly enjoyable, pretty cool!
ReplyDeleteThank you Suber. The miniatures are really nicely sculpted, and I like the little details which link them to the old pre-slotta C32 Slann.
DeleteLove the look. I have spent much of the last 6-7 months painting my Slann army that I had sitting in a very large carrier bag for decades. I think I am upto 9 regiments painted now, with about another 7 to go!! I use the Eru Kin as characters in the army, also the 'Slann' from the Little Toy Soldier Company and some others from a company who's name temporarily escapes me. I love the basing you are doing, really adds to the models.
ReplyDeleteI meant to add, I love the Eru Kin Stargate vibe, but I find the Little Toy Soldier Tenoch have a Cthulhu vibe, which I think works well as a Slann Priesthood too. Maybe an alternative more devolved religion from the High Tech original.
ReplyDeleteThank you, glad you like them
Delete.
That sounds like a quite impressive Slann army. The Eru-kin fit quite nicely with the slotta based Slann from the 1980s, as do the Little Toy Soldier Company's Tenoch, which you're right, they do have a Cthulhu vibe now you mention it! Katsina Miniatures also make some nice Slann miniatures. Ral Partha Europe produce some as well, although their Sci-Fi range are more Ogre sized.
I have been sorting through my Slann collection recently with an eye to starting painting and re-painting them. I have kept the Eru-Kin separate so I can both keep the Slann as a purely 1980s army, and to keep the specific Eru-Kin vibe for the Diehard miniatures. Also, I am basing the Eru-kin in line with the Midgard rules, so I makes sense to keep them as a stand alone project.
I have spilt my 1980s Slann into to two separate armies, with the Perry Twins sculpted early 1980s pre-slotta Slann, and the later 1980s Trish Carden (Trish Morrison as she was in the 1980s). This is because they both have a slightly different design style, and I wanted keep their separate feel. I have about 180 pre-slotta Slann, and about 300 late 1980s Slann. I will update on the blog about them later in the year. At the moment I am finishing off the Eru-Kin, and then moving onto some Mithril miniatures Orcs.
Wow! I haven't counted mine, might have to do that and let you know. I only have 1 or 2 of the Unreleased Slann. It's weird that we both have really large Slann armies and we are both in Sussex (I'm East Grinstead). I really like that Midgard basing!
ReplyDeleteOn the Cthulhu theme from the Tenoch models it also occurred to me that Grenadier made a Call of Cthulhu monster with three beak like heads, that could work in a jungle setting next to a Slann temple ruin, and they also made a few Deep Ones that could even pass as Slann...
ReplyDeleteSorry, scatter brain, the range I couldn't remember is https://satyrartstudio.com/FROG-MEN-SERIES-c173328550
ReplyDeleteThey have made earlier models, my favourite was the Slann Mage Priest on Palanquin from the illustration in the Warhammer Armies book, which I have asca center piece in my army, but they don't appear to sell it anymore. Thanks for the Katsina link I hadn't known about those. The Jag warrior is tempting as a character models...
It's always good to hear about other Slann collectors. The Slann weren't that popular in the 1980s compared to many other armies, so they are not a common army. I did an update on my unreleased Slann here:
Deletehttp://goblinlee.blogspot.com/2023/07/more-unreleased-slann-and-warhammer.html
Grenadier did a Cthulhu range at one point. I have some Tenoch, but I haven't as yet painted them, but they are nice. I would imagine that the palanquin would make a great centre piece.
I had forgotten all about Satyr Arts miniatures. I keep meaning to buy some of the Frogmies from Katsina.