'Northlanders' in Saga. A beginner needs some advice!

[betterZthenDeaD]

Hello!

Been away from the hobby for a while due to the usual kids/family/work thing getting in the way but I am now looking to 'dip my toe' once again. I like the look of the Saga rule set mainly due to it's skirmish style which means I don't need to shell out a fortune for miniatures and I can get back into painting without being discouraged by a huge army sitting on the desk.

Anyways... I'd like to do a small Viking warband based on this...



The first arc of Brian Woods Northlanders (the first eight issues or so) tells the story of Sven, a Viking from the Orkney Islands returning home in 980AD from serving in the Vangarian Guard to find his lands and title stolen by his Uncle. Now I've had a quick look around the t'internets and was wondering whether people had any suggestions for minis to use. I am not going for a direct copy of the images in the book as Brian Wood has said that they are not neccessarily 'historically' accurate.

So far I am thinking of using a mixture of Vikings and Gael Norse figures to indicate a rather 'rustic' Viking warband as they're form Orkney after all! To counterpoint this I'm looking to use a Vangarian Guard model to represent Sven himself (Sven will be my Warlord). So far I've found this fella...



... My question is would this cause an issue as I see he is a named character (Harald Hardradda)? Would I be able to use him as my Warlord in terms of the weapons and equipment he has?

Another character in the book is Enna a Scottish peseant armed with a bow that Sven finds hiding in the surrounding hills. I don't want to give away any spoliers but I'd quite like to represent her on Sven's base. Does anyone have any suggestions for women armed with bows that could be suitable. I'm happy that one peasant looks pretty much like any other irrespective of period so an exact 'historical' match isn't necessary!

Many thanks for reading this, sorry for waffling... I promise as punishment for boring the pants off you to post WiP pictures as soon as the project starts rolling! 

[Timbor]

I can't reccomend any archer-peasants, but I don't see why you could not use the Harald miniature as your warlord.  Will your warlord be equipped with a Dane axe?

If I was playing, I would be less concerned with the WYSIWYG aspect of my opponent's models, so long as they are willing to point out what the units are equipped with if I ask.

[betterZthenDeaD]

Cheers Timbor! I'm not sure on what equipment the Warlord can take as I've not yet bought the rulebook - there is a recession on you know! 

In the book/comic Sven tends to use a sword, which shouldn't be too difficult to replace on the mini. Might even make him look less like Harald Hardradda.

[Gibby]

My mate has that Harold figure. Just so you know, he is enormous! Not far off 40mm!

[betterZthenDeaD]

My mate has that Harold figure. Just so you know, he is enormous! Not far off 40mm!

That's a shame. I might have to have a look to see if anyone else does Vangarian Guard if he's going to be too large. Although saying that, he is going to be my Warlord! If I put him on a 40mm base with another figure (Enna) it might not be as noticable. Might have him standing on a raised base (ie, rocks), that could help lessen the impact too.

[julesav]

Hi BetterZ

Harald Hardraada really was 'bigger than most' as King Harold of England apparently offered more ground for his burial in the parley before the Stamford Bridge battle in 1066.

Figure wise I think that Saga players are not likely to be worried that you are using a figure of a 'named character' as a generic warlord character. Issues of 'official figure' use tend to arise less often in historical games in my experience.

Cheers

Jules

[aircav]

Check out Crusader miniatures they do Varangians

http://www.crusaderminiatures.com/list.php?cat=4&sub=9&page=1

& GB

http://www.grippingbeast.com/shop.php?CatID=8

& the saga forum  

[Johnno]

North landers is a fantastic series.
Just read 7th TPB.

I look forward to following this

[Little Odo]

I have just ordered the TPBs from my comics supplier - I have the first two through already and will be getting one per month until they are all through - I am looking forward to seeing where this thread goes too.