Fantastic Battles army building

I have been on a bit of a 10mm kick recently. I blame my unmedicated ADHD (long story) for making me hop from project to project like this. I was checking out some of the Forest Dragon 10mm miniatures with an aim to create some stats for the Wild Elves and Chaos Dwarf models that they sell. 

I was feeling a bit constrained by what I had available. Part of it was that a Chaos Dwarf army, as defined by Games Workshop, has a lot of Orc and Hobgoblin troops in it. I liked the idea of Hobgoblins but I really did want an army that had more hardened troops in it. I finally realised that I could just build whatever army I wanted since the Fantastic Battle rules didn't have any set army lists. I was stuck in an 'army list' mindset without thinking that I could just use whatever miniatures I wanted. 

As well as making it possible for me to build what I wanted, it was also an excuse to be creative about the army, the units and the characters in it. So I took some time and wrote a bit about all of the models in the force. This is still a work in progress. 

The army of the Lord of the North

History

He started his campaigns in the north as Akon the Fair. He was originally given the name as a comment on his complexion and general airs. Akon's original remit was to patrol the north and clear out the nests of bandits, petty lordlings and miscreants that made the area unsafe for colonization and commerce. Only later was the name used ironically as his reputation as an oath-breaker began to precede him. 

He met with initial success but this effort, by the lords of the southern provinces, to impose themselves on the north caused the many disparate forces there to band together. Where initially Akon was met with small, scattered forces that were easy to defeat his progress almost completely stalled as his troops quickly began to be outnumbered. 

His requests for reinforcements from the lords to the south were met with polite refusal and so Akon set out to expand his force by forging alliances with the very peoples he was meant to be eliminating. Some have claimed this to be an expediency forced upon him by his masters to the south. Others have suggested that, whatever his excuses, Akon had already seen his army in the north as a path to glory that wasn't impeded by his lack of station or family connections. 

His power was initially limited and so he was forced to enter into agreements with small bandit bands and scattered groups of hobgoblins. As his power grew, Akon quickly cast aside these early followers which lead them to call him Oathbreaker. 

Lieutenants

As his power grew, Akon gained the allegiance of several powerful northerners all with different claims to power. 

Gamel Firetouched

Gamel Firetouched is the head of a band of Demonsmith mercenaries. While Gamel has not entered into a formal alliance with Akon, it has been many years since his chaotic band of dwarven fighters, alchemists and pyrotechnicians have fought for anyone else. The Firetouched's most prominent addition to Akon's forces are the batteries of rockets and mortars they bring to the field.  

Gamel's contribution also consists of a company of elite armoured troops and a company of dwarves armed with blackpowder blunderbusses. His warriors don't usually stray far from Gamels side but his blackpowder warriors are led by crazed pyrotechnician who loves nothing more than seeing ranks of troops fall apart under fire from his blunderbuss. As such he roams the field, often ignoring other commands, to find the best enemy troops to surprise with his explosive weaponry.

Asobal Vek

Asobal Vek is the master of the physical form. His magicks are used to bend and merge man and beast to create new creatures for use on the battlefield. His gaze is difficult to hold as he always seems to be apportioning those he looks at as a butcher views a haunch. There are few that would engage with him but Asobal doesn't care. His sole concern is for his study and his work for he dreams of creating larger and more sinister agglutinations of man and beast.

Even his failures prove useful. When his spells and concoctions fail to materialise in the way he predict he is often left with twisted and enraged creatures that defy proper categorization. These are kept until needed in battle and then goaded with physical and magical means until blinded with rage. Unleashed ahead of Akon's forces they drive mercilessly towards the enemy hoping to end their pain in death.

Kenner Sharptooth

Kenner Sharptooth is unlike any other Hobgoblin leader. She seeks to not only expand her own power and the power of her hatch of hobgoblins. She also wants to be know for her strategic mind. Victory is sweet but not as sweet, to her, as the victory gained with a careful plan. Currently she is working on forging her Wolf Riders into an elite (for Hobgoblins) force of marauding cavalry. Once she has them drilled into order she will work on her infantry and then become the most famous Hobgoblin general the world has seen. 

Claria One-eye

Claria, as is the practice of her particular school of thaumaturgy, has sacrificed one of her eyes to gain the power to glimpse into the future. She fled to the north to avoid a sentence of death put upon her by a southerner who was dissatisfied with the accuracy of her prognostications. Her vision of a lord's death, while accurate, made her suspect in the death and she fled to the freedom of the north to avoid her own end. 

She is skilled in many smaller magicks but her primary skill is in prophecy. Blind to the physical world her empty socket can glimpse into the future and see snatches of propitious events. Her visions have helped Akon snatch victory from defeat on many occasions. 

Silther Ironhand

A follower of the dark gods of the far north, Silther was sent to find and follow Akon by dreams sent to him by his gods. At first he came with only a few poorly equipped followers. As the years passed, Silther's dedication to his pantheon brought his a wide range of new followers who donned armour and took to battle to help him promote his cause. Silter now commands a company of heavily armoured warriors and a second company of heavy cavalry. All of his warriors are bound to him with dark oaths, their armour festooned with dire symbols of the old gods. Their faith in him is unshakable.

Akalabeth

The current high-point of Asobel Vek's art is the two-headed dragon Akalabeth. Raised from eggs, Vek merged the two beasts moments after they have left the egg. Having no real experience of being distinct creatures, the conjoined dragon has had fewer issues adjusting to the new reality of their situation. Akon was there at their birth allowing both creatures to bond with him upon hatching. 

Akalabeth is still growing and will become an even larger and more dangerous monster in the years ahead.

Troops

Oath Guard

Consisting of most of Silther Ironhand's most reliable troops, this company of heavy infantry is the core of Akon's army. They are the grindstone on which his enemies are ground down. Protected not only by their armour but also by their oaths to their dark gods, these troops  make up the deadly centre of Akon's army.

Lord's Horse

The company originally started out as a force of light, marauding cavalry. After Akon made an alliance with Kenner Sharptooth he had access to a much larger force of light cavalry. Slowly the Lord's Horse, as they came to be known, gained stronger mounts and heavier armour and became the army's heavy cavalry force. The Lord's Horse are often deployed behind the main line of the army looking for a weak point to hurl themselves at. Between the weight of their weapons and the speeds of their mounts they often crack opposing lines and split the enemy in half with a single charge. 

Wolf Riders

Kenner Sharptooth has spent years training his Wolf Riders into more than the usual haggard band of bandits. Perhaps it is the training or the impact of the focus of the wolves they ride but Sharptooth's mounted troops have a discipline that his infantry lack. Wolf and rider are tasked with 'biting the heels' of enemy light troops and archers. Sometimes literally. They lurk at the edge of the battle and sprint in to let loose a flight of arrows to keep their opponents from being able to focus on the front. 

Hobgoblin infantry

The rest of Sharptooth's troops are a moment away from a fight. Any fight. Even amongst themselves. Every moment that is spent training with the Wolf Riders is a moment that lets the worse habits of the Hobgoblins fester in his infantry. They are always on the lookout for fight and don't particularly care if it is a friend or a foe. Discretion has them on the army's flank where they can do the least damage.

Demonsmith artillery

There is nothing a Demonsmith likes more than a loud explosion. Unless it is a loud explosion in the ranks of an enemies army. So it makes sense that the centre-point of  Gamel Firetouched's force are batteries of rockets and mortars. Placed behind the advancing troops, the artillery can loft explosive payloads at opposing troops helping to soften them up before the rest of the army advances into combat. And even if they don't manage to do much damage the percussive sounds of the explosions help urge the army on.

Hand cannoneers

The blunderbuss is a charming Demonsmith invention that attempts to put the power of a cannon into the hands of an infantry trooper. The weapon is primed with Demonsmith blasting powder and is filled with scrap metal, nails, rocks or any sharp object the gunners can find. It is slow to fire and short ranged but the result is often a rank of enemy troops torn asunder. 

Axe of Flame

Gamel Firetouched's own infantry guard are called the Axe of Flame. The name comes from the mystic axe that Gamel has bestowed upon the leader of the company. It frequently passes from leader to leader as the axe not only is magically enflamed and sharpened but also enflames the ardour of the bearer making them eager to charge into battle. The axe seeks only combat and is never bothered by the fate of the warrior wielding it. Gamel is loathe to have the company be deployed very far from himself. He views them more as an expanded bodyguard than anything else and uses them to guard his person. 

Dragon Ogres

Asobal Vek is especially proud of the company of Dragon Ogres.  Conjured from a mixture of disparate beasts they have had the most impact on the battlefield of any of his works. Not strictly 'dragon' or 'ogre' they are a mixture of many different creatures which were then magically enlarged. Their additional limbs allow them to speed across the battlefield and their unearthly form and bellowing cries cause their opponents to think twice about engaging them.