pachristian Posted July 29, 2017 Share Posted July 29, 2017 I'm looking to run a game set in Safelester. I'm trying to find a "look and feel" for miniatures for the westerners. I use Ancient Germans (and some Gauls) for Orlanthi, Babylonians/Assyrians for Lunars (not needed for this game), Classic Era Greeks for the Sun Dome Temple. What seems appropriate for the west? Mostly I need bandits and soldiers from the city-states, but Seshnegi warriors and wizards would be useful as well. Any suggestions? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joerg Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 (edited) I am not a historical miniatures person, but: Ancient Persian or Kshatryan Indian cavalry might fit, or Macedon or Diadoch forces. Visigoths or Merovingian Franks could work, too. The Beast societies of the Rokari military offers an excuse for variety of equipment and styles much like in the armies that Alexander faced. For the Safelstrans, Orlanthi with loaned equipment from other cultures might be a theme, or a continuation of Seshnegi types. The Enerali-descended folk are likely to field cavalry. Mercenary troops prevail and may even have classical Greek style equipment - not necessarily only Yelmalians - or Hannibal's Carthaginians, Nubians and Hispanic mercenaries (minus the elephants). You might have Hsunchen mercenaries - Pralori stag riders, mixed human/lion Basmoli forces, Telmori neolithics accompanied by wolves. Naskorion has troll allies, and troll or trollkin mercenaries might be possible, too, although possibly even less welcome than human mercenaries. Bandits are likely marauding mercenaries without contract. Same as above, only dirtier and shabbier. If you can get medieval peasant militia with improvised farming tool weaponry, those can be mixed into bandit forces. If you are playing near the lake, marines deployed from galleys probably are a typical intervention force, too - possibly armed with weaponized oars (rower soldiers, linothorax). Go wild with your field signs. That's where the mercenary forces have their magicians for regiment-affecting magics, and the Seshnegi-style forces quite likely, too. Druids might be a good source for wizards in the field, if you can find ones with high head-gear. Inquisitors might work, too, if you can cut down the crosses or modify them to staves. Edited July 30, 2017 by Joerg 2 Quote Telling how it is excessive verbis Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 (edited) The Westerners are quite difficult to pigeon-hole at present. I mentioned something very similar in another thread - From what depictions I have gleaned from the writings and artwork in the G2G, I tend to envision the Malkioni as having some analogies with ancient Carthagians, Successor Wars era Macedonians and the early Byzantine Empire Romans; as well as displaying very prominent influences from Near-Eastern cultures like Scythian, Sarmatian, Persian; as well as Vedic, and other Indo-Asian cultures (see The Kushan Empire, for example). Some excellent suggestions from Joerg Edited July 31, 2017 by Mankcam 1 Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachristian Posted July 30, 2017 Author Share Posted July 30, 2017 Thank you, Joerg and Mankcam. Those are some good suggestions. There is a strong "they're not feudal knights" bias in Gloranthan writing these days. Which is not a bad thing, but if you use Eastern Med look for central Glorantha, India/SE Asia for Teshnos, and China for Kralorela, it doesn't leave much to fall back on. I've pigeonholed Scythians for Pentans, so I don't want to use those. I like the idea of using Macedonians for Westerners (keeping in mind there's a lot of variety in westerners. Many companies make Macedonians, so it's not too hard to find miniatures. Right now, the best bet for me is Dacians & Sarmations; which are sort of your pre-Byzantine Byzantine forces. They have a good, slightly exotic, look. And the description of Ethilrist and his men using a two-handed spear/lance from horseback is very much a Sarmation style of fighting. An alternative is Arthurian British, using historic miniatures from the 5th century. This looks a lot like your Gaul or Gothic cavalry and infantry - not quite Germanic, but close. The trick, for me, is to pick a consistent look, so that units can be identified as being from a particular culture, and so players can identify troops and opponents on the table. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 (edited) Well I'ld certainly go with a Macedonian look. Then add in some Sarmatian flavour and Scythians However don't discount some northern indo-asian references, see below for Kushan warriors for instance: Edited July 31, 2017 by Mankcam 1 Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 I apologise regarding the size of those pics, I tried to resize them but they keep coming out so large - my tech-fu is low... Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JanPospisil Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 As you can guess from my painting, the Kushan riders in lamellar with their high collars are my favourite. The high collars especially are a neat detail, you can also see this in some earlier Chinese, contemporary Xiongnu, and later Korean armours. Also moustaches, fabulous moustaches everywhere. Here's Jeff's notes on Seshnelan art direction, some good links there: http://www.glorantha.com/docs/seshnela-art-direction/ THe illustrations in the Kushan Montvert book are not very good, but keep in mind there would've been more Indian looking troops as well: 9 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M Helsdon Posted July 30, 2017 Share Posted July 30, 2017 It's a shame the finished version of this Seshnelan piece didn't get into the Guide: 10 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachristian Posted July 30, 2017 Author Share Posted July 30, 2017 The Kushans look really good. And based on the Guide comments, that would be the design to use. However, they don't seem to be available in 28mm. I found a company that does Kushans (http://khurasanminiatures.tripod.com/kushan.html) but they're 15mm....Parthians are available in 28mm (https://aventineminiatures.co.uk/parthians/) or (https://www.essexminiatures.co.uk/collections/25mm-ancient-parthians) or (http://www.oldgloryminiatures.com/products.asp?cat=152). But most of these seem to be in 25mm scale - believe me these do NOT look right next to 28mm figures. Sarmatians are available from several manufacturers (https://us-store.warlordgames.com/collections/dacians, and https://www.wargamesfoundry.com/collections/dacians-and-sarmatians for example). I am not advocating one miniatures company or another - I'm just putting up some links for anyone else who is in the same boat I am. The only lines of Indian figures that are (apparently) reliable all seem to be from the India Mutiny. The "look" isn't quite right. I think I could use Sarmatians and build up their collars with greens stuff. I'll forget the Falxmen, and possibly use Persian Immortals, for the armored foot troops (and swap out the shields). I'm not doing an army; I just need to be able to field a squad against some PC's and their followers. And don't worry about the picture sizes! Makes it easier for my weak old eyes to see. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 (edited) The Malkioni are a large ethnic population, and like Theyalans, they will have various regional varieties. It's a bit difficult to envision the Westerners until a focused Malkioni product is released, however one can get a flavour for them by mixing several sources. The G2G is the greatest resource, but here are some additional images that I have gathered in my files to portray Horali Foot Soldiers and Cataphracts. It's a hodgepodge of pics ranging from Etruscans, Macedonians, and Byzantine Romans through to Parthians, Scythians, and Kushans. Mixing these influences tends to put me in the ballpark of how to visualise the Malkioni at present. So this is a bit of an image dump, not sure if its helpful or not: Edited July 31, 2017 by Mankcam 2 Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stew Stansfield Posted July 31, 2017 Share Posted July 31, 2017 (edited) I've always thought that the very greatest duck heroes (behave) wore contraptions like the Husaria's wings in an atavistic attempt to manifest pre-Curse greatness... ... on foot. As quasi-Orlanthi heroes, their 'Four Supporters' in battle spend much of their time doing just that - trying to keep the hero upright. (Edit: Very sorry, thought this was in the 'other' thread. Will stop derailing. ) Edited July 31, 2017 by Quackatoa 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soltakss Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 On 7/30/2017 at 9:43 PM, Mankcam said: I apologise regarding the size of those pics, I tried to resize them but they keep coming out so large - my tech-fu is low... No worries, they are lovely pictures. Quote Simon Phipp - Caldmore Chameleon - Wallowing in my elitism since 1982. Many Systems, One Family. Just a fanboy. www.soltakss.com/index.html Jonstown Compendium author. Find my contributions here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soltakss Posted August 4, 2017 Share Posted August 4, 2017 The Mongolian horseman has a very odd looking helmet, almost like a certoon character with a big scarf and little eyes. I hadn't seen a picture of a Bolgar Knight before, very interesting. Where did you find the Russian illustrations? Quote Simon Phipp - Caldmore Chameleon - Wallowing in my elitism since 1982. Many Systems, One Family. Just a fanboy. www.soltakss.com/index.html Jonstown Compendium author. Find my contributions here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mankcam Posted August 5, 2017 Share Posted August 5, 2017 (edited) Yeah I thought that fellow looked a bit like Marvin The Martian lol. I don't remember the actual sites I grabbed these from. I tend to just wade through Google Images and save images willy nilly. I really should follow the source pages ... Edited August 5, 2017 by Mankcam Quote " Sure it's fun, but it is also well known that a D20 roll and an AC is no match against a hefty swing of a D100% and a D20 Hit Location Table!" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soltakss Posted August 5, 2017 Share Posted August 5, 2017 No problem, I can do that as well. Marvin the Martian, that's the chappie! Quote Simon Phipp - Caldmore Chameleon - Wallowing in my elitism since 1982. Many Systems, One Family. Just a fanboy. www.soltakss.com/index.html Jonstown Compendium author. Find my contributions here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
borbetomagnus Posted October 16, 2019 Share Posted October 16, 2019 Victrix Limited has a few sets in their 28mm Ancients line to represent Macedonians. Check out their figure sets here. They also have others in their Ancients line that could represent Lunars. I received a free worldwide postage discount code via their email newsletter that is valid through 21 October 2019: AUTUMNSALE Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M Helsdon Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 (edited) One of my Western sketches in The Armies and Enemies of Dragon Pass sequel. This noble is equipped for lion hunting. Edited June 1, 2020 by M Helsdon 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
French Desperate WindChild Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 (edited) 3 hours ago, M Helsdon said: One of my Western sketches in The Armies and Enemies of Dragon Pass sequel. This noble is equipped for lion hunting. Maybe because the black and white, at least because the chest armor, if I didn't know what represents your beautiful sketch, I would have said that represents a high status knight (prince duke, king, because the crown) in gala during the Renaissance edit : It is just an impression, not a challenge, I m not an expert Edited June 1, 2020 by French Desperate WindChild Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sir_Godspeed Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 16 minutes ago, French Desperate WindChild said: Maybe because the black and white, at least because the chest armor, if I didn't know what represents your beautiful sketch, I would have said that represents a high status knight (prince duke, king, because the crown) in gala during the Renaissance There are some obvious visual similarities between late BC/early AD cataphracts and the European knights of the high middle ages (heavy armor, barding, etc.), so you're not totally off. Conveniently for us, that means we get to play at the whole "knight" fantasy introduced to western Glorantha way before my time, but without ruining the whole Antiquity feel. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dissolv Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 The art direction hasn't provided a clear enough place for me to land on. However: Or Sarmatians. Sarmatians are always my "go-to" for heavily armored, no chain mail, yet "not-Knight" ancient extra heavy cavalry. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachristian Posted June 1, 2020 Author Share Posted June 1, 2020 My plan for now is to use Sarmatians. I like those Fireforge miniatures, they have good, dynamic, poses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill the barbarian Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 (edited) On 7/29/2017 at 2:54 PM, pachristian said: m looking to run a game set in Safelester. I'm trying to find a "look and feel" for miniatures for the westerners. I use Ancient Germans (and some Gauls) for Orlanthi, Babylonians/Assyrians for Lunars (not needed for this game), Classic Era Greeks for the Sun Dome Temple. What seems appropriate for the west? Mostly I need bandits and soldiers from the city-states, but Seshnegi warriors and wizards would be useful as well. Any suggestions? I use Woody, Jessie and prospector myself, though every now and again I throw in Mr Potato Head, though he is not truly “Western" Edited June 1, 2020 by Bill the barbarian 2 Quote ... remember, with a TARDIS, one is never late for breakfast! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
M Helsdon Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 (edited) 4 hours ago, French Desperate WindChild said: Maybe because the black and white, at least because the chest armor, if I didn't know what represents your beautiful sketch, I would have said that represents a high status knight (prince duke, king, because the crown) in gala during the Renaissance edit : It is just an impression, not a challenge, I m not an expert The bronze cuirass, scale skirt and lamellar limb armor is all derived from sources plus or minus two centuries of 0 AD, though some details may be later, with some added fantasy. The horse armor is bronze for the chamfron and criniere, and the barding is lacquered cuir boilli plates on a leather backing. Whilst this noble has a lance, cataphracts go back a long way. Most of the other cataphracts I have drawn are wearing face masks which are distinctly Persian, but for this one I decided he should be bare faced, as lions rarely loose arrows. Edited June 1, 2020 by M Helsdon 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dissolv Posted June 1, 2020 Share Posted June 1, 2020 Looking deeper at the Fireforge catalog, I note that the Byzantine foot does not have chain mail, either the spear man nor auxiliaries. These could be used for Glorantha figures very easily. I don't know exactly what troops I'll be modelling with these, but I plan to pick some up. https://fireforge-games.com/byzantines-25 Their Mongol cavalry could be Char-Un, and the Mongol Heavy Cavalry Lancers I posted the image of earlier. https://fireforge-games.com/mongol-horde-22 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pachristian Posted June 8, 2020 Author Share Posted June 8, 2020 On 6/1/2020 at 10:27 AM, Bill the barbarian said: I use Woody, Jessie and prospector myself, though every now and again I throw in Mr Potato Head, though he is not truly “Western" Ah - the scale's all wrong. I could use Woody as Gonn Orta... 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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