Rough Draft completed

Here is a rough draft of the city of Grenzstadt.

Mapping Grenzstadt

So, after much searching, I have found the best way to get the maps I am looking for, is to come up with some of my own.
The first one I am doing is of the city of Grenzstadt in the Province of Averland, as this is what city I am basing my army around. Below are my notes of what I need to do said map. I am going to use a variety of tools to complete this project, including a photo editor, any background information, and my own brain.

Here is what I have for notes so far.

Grenzstadt Map project

Rough Draft of Walls/Gatehouses
Rough Draft of layout of districts individual and together as a whole
Rough Draft of layout of streets/blocks

Several small shapes that can be turned a variety of ways and used to "fill in" the city. (Houses etc...)
Slightly Larger shapes to represent larger buildings
Trees/Forest
River
Wall/ Gatehouse
Mountain texture

A list of places to see
Districts
Banking district
Market District
Dwarven District
Animal pub names
Guild list
Inns
Types of Shops
Tailors
Book
Meats
Produce
Curiosities
Tobacco
Jewelry
Elven Goods
Messenger
Casino – Near theatres
Clothiers
Fine Linens
Blacksmith
Weapon shop
Agricultural Equipment
Cattle Yards
Stables
Temple District
Temples – major Averland Gods
Sigmar
Myrmidia
Shrines – minor gods
Taal
Shallya
Morr
Garden of Morr cemetery
Imperial Shrines to Heroes Past
“Government”/ Military District
Chapterhouse for Blazing Suns Knights – ties in with Temple of Myrmidia
Courts
Tax Office
Assay Office
“Official” Dispatch Office (“post” office)
City Guard barracks
Stables
Museums – tie into marketing and temple districts.
Palace District
Influential family dwellings
Theatre district
Slums
Prison
Docks
Ferry to Hochsleben and points Westward.
Signal House – signal tower to receive from Black Fire pass
Gatehouses/Wall

Outside City limits
Signal Tower in Black Fire pass
Dwarven mine/underway entrances
Imperial Mine entrances
Military Training Grounds
Tollhouse

I will keep you guys updated on this project, as it is something I have never attempted before. I look forward to hearing from you along the way as well with c/c.

The forces of Grenzstadt

I finally decided on which city my Averland army will be based in. I am doing the army of Grenzstadt. I will also include some units from Averheim for support, and since the town of Grenzstadt has a large dwarven community, I will include some units of Dwarves in my force, using them as "counts as" models. I will be posting again soon giving the history of Grenzstadt, and some more background. Including characters, and units.

Knightly Orders part 4

I bet you were wondering when I would post the next Knightly Orders article. I am guessing you have had sleepless nights for over a year now, waiting in constant anticipation of when the next Knightly Order article would be posted. Wait no longer fellow imperials! The time is now…

Black Knights of Morr

“Encased within black armour and deathly silent when on the battlefield, the Knights of Morr are the dark guardians of the Empire. When parents wish to get their children to sleep at night, they tell them that the Knights of Morr will come for them unless they rest.
The Knights of Morr are widely feared for their devotion to the god of the dead, and dark tales abound regarding their initiation rites. Even so, their martial prowess is more than welcome to those they fight alongside, for their silent efficiency is among the best in the Empire”.

Sister Orders

The Black Guard of Morr

Seen less frequently on the open battlefield then knights of other orders, the sinister Black Guard are more often encountered traveling alone or in small groups, seeking out corrupt sorcerers who would interfere with the realm of the dead and take resting souls form their place at Morr’s side. In this capacity they frequently work alongside the Witch Hunters of Sigmar, combining arms to deal with an undead threat.

Order of the Black Rose
(possibly the same as the Knights of the Black Rose but the huge differences in fluff lead me to believe they are different orders with very similar names.)

This is an ancient temple order of knights. At the Battle of the Talabec, the Order of the Black Rose were Ottilia of Talabecland’s cavalry bodyguard. They are “justly famed across the land” and recruited from the best warriors of the state. The number is kept at a hundred men who are paid and equipped by the state. Their armour is stained black in a reference to their name, except for their gauntlets which are red, signifying spilt blood. They carry heavy lances, maces, swords, and kite shaped shields with a rose and thorns entwined around a bleeding heart.
The barding for their horses is unique. The motifs used “all suggest the affiliation of the order with the god Morr: skulls, dreaded Morr himself, and other motifs are all prevalent.” It is the knight’s sworn duty to protect the Countess of Talabecland.Using Knights of Morr in your games of Warhammer.

+10 / +14 inner circle

Knights are considered immune to the effects of psychology.

And Now a brief word from our sponsors...

Just a quick post to point you over to a new blog I just started.

Here.

Test Fig completed.

Here is the test fig for my Averland Army rank and file spearmen.



Front



Front again


Back


Close up - wow the camera really brings out the sucky.

Hobby ADD

Holy Posting Batman! I decided to post to my Empire blog a bit more frequently.
I also decided on a province after all this time, as I switched and thought about doing Nordland (this phase lasted all of about 2 weeks.)
Then, because of the large number of militia models I have, I thought I would do Stirland. (That phase lasted a while.) Then I did a test model, and was not crazy about how it looked, but I did like the idea of using yellow, since that is one of the colors I had in my paint supply. So, after much self reflection, soul searching, and consulting my fellow Warhammer-Empire blokes, I decided to go with Averland. What follows is a brief description of Averland, and its history.
Averland is one of the richest provinces in The Empire, though it is neither the largest nor the most influential, and its army is famous for its ostentatious uniforms. Its wide, open plains are extremely fertile - thanks to the regular flooding of the Aver and the Upper Reik rivers. Averland is perfect horse-breeding country - the finest steeds for riding and for battle come from here. The province is also noted for its long-horn cattle, and for its excellent wine.

The most important geographical feature is the Blackfire Pass. The pass, a deep, volcanic cleft in the rock, is the only reliable route across the mountains. Nevertheless, the pass is infamous for its terrible weather. A seemingly fine day can turn into a blinding snowstorm with frightening speed.

An old Dwarf road runs through the pass, connecting the Dwarf holds of the World’s Edge Mountains and the lands of the Border Princes to The Empire; trade goods, especially the valuable metal ores from the dwarfs, flow constantly into Averheim, from where they are transported by river into Nuln. It is this trade that grants Averland its wealth, but it comes with a heavy price. The pass is perpetually attacked, mostly by orc and goblin tribes, and keeping the way safe for trade is a difficult task. Guardianship of the pass falls to the Mountainguard, the elite of Averland’s forces.

The Mountainguard are stubborn, implacable veterans with the highest level of training, favouring the halberd and the handgun as their primary weapons. Many wear a devise consisting of a black flame upon a yellow field: the unofficial motif of the guard. The Bergjaeger are a special detachment of the Mountainguard, formed from trappers, hunters and other such rangers. They are excellent archers and master trap-setters who know the pass like no other. Halflings serve both in the state army and in the Mountainguard, and have done ever since Gorbad Ironclaw’s devastation of The Moot, the Halfling homeland.

The dangers of the pass were made all too clear by a massive Orc invasion that occurred quite recently. The Elector Count Marius Leitdorf was slain by the Orc general (later dispatched by the Emperor himself). Thus far, no successor has been named. The pass has been the gateway to the Empire for many other greenskin invasions, most notably those of Grom the Paunch of Misty Mountain (2410) and Gorbad Ironclaw (1707). The pass was also the site of Sigmar’s legendary defeat of the Orc and Goblin tribes, and remains a place of pilgrimage for the faithful and the fanatical.

Averland has very strong links to Tilea, and the influence of that country can be seen both in the province’s heavy use of the crossbow and the half-pike, and in the worship of Myrmidia, the Tilean goddess of war. Averland makes greater use of mercenaries than any other province, and the state army almost invariably includes a high proportion of Tileans. The Knights of the Blazing Sun are the most important Knightly Order in Averland. Templars of Myrmidia, they were formed in 1457 during the crusades against Araby.

Of special historical interest are the ancient ruins called the Three Towers. These structures were built by the Elves of Ulthuan in the distant past, and were more recently the site of a great battle between the Elves and the men of The Empire. The day was won by The Empire, and the towers have since fallen into ruin. They now serve as a hideout for bandits and warlocks, and should be avoided by travellers.

Aside from the capital of Averheim, Averland has many prosperous trading towns. These include Hochsleben, the last town before the Blackfire Pass; Wuppertal, famous for its wood-carvers; and Loningbruck, a centre for wine-making.

You mean you can actually game with these things?

So I played a game of Warhammer for the first time in 3 years. I went to a friend's house, and he just got a gaming table top for his dining room table. I happened to have the grass mat, and some scenery. And we commenced with a 2500pt game of Skaven vs. Empire. Turn 1 was pretty eventful for both sides. Skaven forgot to use their Screaming Bell, and the rest of the magic phase was pretty uneventful. During the shooting phase for the Skaven, they blew up their own plague mortar. (Typical Skaven) Turn 1 for Empire saw no movement, and no magic (since I forgot the entire magic phase!) shooting saw a mortar miss, another one blow up, and I forgot to shoot with my Helblaster. (Perhaps the crew were too busy laughing at the misfortune of the rats, or were distracted by the flying shards of Empire mortar raining down a few yards to their right.) So, the rest of the game was good, I will report here as I see fit. (Sorry, I am at work, and can not give a full report due to time/memory.) I will say that I can not wait to play again! I just need to tweak my list a bit.

You can see my goals for May here. I also started working on getting 30 Swordsmen done, I think they will do a bit better than the Spearmen.