Oldhammer In Moria: Tempt not the Valar, You Proud Hobbit!

[FramFramson]

He's certainly armoured his Balzac! 

[Mars Miniatures]

@ hubbabubba,
Glad you think the dwarves look good. Huzzah indeed.

@ Plisken,
I normally dont care much for 3d prints (IMHO, most seem to lack a certain je ne sais quoi). But the Epic Miniatures Mythos figures are fantastic. If you like the latest handgunners for the good guys, the next post will have the villains get some tech upgrades as well. Its an arms race in Middle Earth!

@ FramFramson,
I had actually forgot to add some quip about Balzac. So, thank you for that? :p

[LordOdo]

The dwarves are back in town!

Curious to the tech updates too....

[Mars Miniatures]

@ LordOdo,
Be curious no more! Tech update.... commence transmission.

From full post here: https://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2023/08/haradrim-handgunners.html

Haradrim Handgunners

At the end of the 3rd Age, Gondor and the West won. The War of the Ring had ended, but a Cold War had begun. The Haradrim retreated back to their own lands, not to be heard from... until now.

The Haradrim have not been idle all this time, they have also completed research on gunpowder upgrades for their troops. So the arms race escalates in Middle Earth.

And while the Easterlings seem to have given up their wars with Gondor (or have they?), the Southrons will not give up their zealous war with the West. So who are the Haradrim? (at least from this blog's point of view)



A column of smoke by day, a pillar of fire by night.

Desert power!

The Haradrim are desert warriors without peer. They are strong and fierce. They do not give their loyalty easily or quickly.

We Fremen have a saying: "God created Arrakis to train the faithful." One cannot go against the word of God.



This is a Naib of Sietch Howeitat. A tribal leader riding a Dire Jerboa. The Haradrim name for these Dire Jerboas is Muad Dib. Some madman would later take the name and use it as his own to conquer the galaxy.

 
Auda abu Tayi: Does Auda abu Tayi serve?

Howeitat tribesmen: NO!

Auda abu Tayi: I carry twenty-three great wounds, all got in battle. Seventy-five men have I killed with my own hands in battle. I scatter, I burn my enemies' tents. I take away their flocks and herds. The Turks pay me a golden treasure, yet I am poor! Because I am a river to my people!

Howeitat tribesmen: *Cheering*



A Djinn Whisperer wears a yellow turban to signify his status among his people.

Alithea Binnie: If there is fate, who can say? But I tell you this: in the Grand Bazaar of Istanbul, there are sixty-two streets, and four thousand shops. And in one of those shops, there are three rooms. In the smallest of those rooms, there was a pile of things unsorted, old and new. From the bottom of that pile, I chose a memento.   *picks up a flask*



It's hard in these streets
From Mecca to Jerusalem
All day every day

Toe flex we bout to blow like octane
You know Cannibal Ox got mad slang
Who cares what you're named
They say a man who repeats himself is insane
I mix my saliva with propane
Flame on I spit that hot fire with Dylan
And stay inside the line with crayons
My whole aura is neon, ultra violet
Come out your mouth
I might get ultra violent
Now it's so quiet
You was popping that junk
Now it's so silent
Here's another token
We are the chosen
Wolves in the coven
Blade of the Ronin



Gondorian Imperial Guard clash with the Haradrim in the Debatable Lands south of Gondor.

The Southrons fight for tribal rights against the infidel Gondorians who are on a crusade to globalize their consumeristic ideals by infecting all nations with fastfood and starbucks. So the Haradrim have drawn a line in the sand. The big mac stops here...



Now the King told the boogie man
You have to let that raga drop
The oil down the desert way
Has been shakin' to the top
The Sheik, he drove his Cadillac
He went a-cruisin' down the ville
The muezzin was a-standin'
On the radiator grille (ow!)



The King called up his jet fighters
He said you better earn your pay
Drop your bombs between the Minarets
Down the Casbah way
As soon as the Sharif was chauffeured outta there
The jet pilots tuned to the cockpit radio blare
As soon as the Sharif was outta their hair
The jet pilots wailed

Sharif don't like it
Rockin' the Casbah
Rock the Casbah
Sharif don't like it
Rockin' the Casbah
Rock the Casbah

~~~

These are Haradrim from Near Harad. We still have the Sietches of Far Harad! And more than that... the tribes from the Sub-Saharad regions. So lots more Southrons still to come! More Muad Dib riders and Mumakil. Oh did I say Mumakil?

Cheers,
Mar

From full post here: https://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2023/08/haradrim-handgunners.html

[3Fingers2]

Liking  the paint scheme on the seeker, I had idea while back to mount mount napoleonic cavalry on those for vsf it never got done annd I sold it all off .

[Mars Miniatures]

From full post here: https://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2023/08/blast-from-10mm-past.html

Blast From The 10mm Past!

 Hiya buddies,

Just thought I would do a Throwback Thursday on a Wednesday. Im so punkrock! :p

The year was 2014.

Long ago on a blogpost far far away.... the Moria Reclamation Project was in 10mm. And I had forgotten that it was even back then already on a diet of parody and memes, multi-versal IP dimension hopping, over the top dramatic fluff combined with outright silliness. So of course, this blog got to be what it is now.

So yeah, I switched scales to 28mm and deleted the old 10mm posts. I regret that. But some of it still exists on the Specialist Games Forum, a forum which surprisingly still functions today. And before anything happens to it I have dl'ed those pics and some fluff and will post them on this blog... again! Everything returns eventually. Its all a cycle of life. Gaming life. But there are missing things. Like a Mindflayer that I sculpted myself. Like Not-Conan and the Fellowship fighting Orcs and a Dragon. That adventure will have to live on in my imagination now.

Here is the actual forum: https://www.specialist-arms.com/forum/index.php?topic=6878.0

But for safety purposes of this blog, we will duplicate parts of it below...

Look at those tiny dwarfs! And those Total Battles buildings. They were indeed lovely.

The woods are lovely, dark and deep,. But I have promises to keep,. And miles to go before I sleep,. And miles to go before I sleep.

 

~~~~~~~~~~ TIME TRAVEL SOUNDBITE ~~~~~~~~~~


My new and humble LOTR-Warmaster blog

Hi there,
 
  Im Mar, and I just started 10mm with Copplestone, some GW Warmaster, some Pendraken, and just ebayed a BOFA box set (new and still wrapped in plastic!)  So Ive started documenting my "adventures in 10mm".  I am very happy to have found this place, lots for me to read and catch up on.  Im also thankful to have found Copplestone minis whose sculpts drove me to take the plunge back into warmaster.





















~~~~~~~~~~ TIME TRAVEL SOUNDBITE ~~~~~~~~~~

Ok back to the present day!

My sign off used to be Respect, Mar. I think Cheers is friendlier. And there was a plan in motion to have a war between Westeros and the nations of Middle Earth! And yes even back then, I did love putting up book and movie quotes.

So, for oldtimes sake...

Respect,

Mar

See blog for more pics and words: https://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2023/08/blast-from-10mm-past.html

[fred]

Very cool - thanks for the repost

I assume you were playing Warmaster looking at the basing? How much further did you get with your Middle Earth battles?

The copplestone Nazgûl on the wing beast figure still looks very limp and sad, even painted up so well. Given how lovely all the other Copplestone LoTR figures are I was never sure what happen to this one.

I’m a bit confused by the appearance of the frog men (I have them in a KoW inspired Trident Realms army) - I’m assuming they’re not for Middle Earth?

[Mars Miniatures]

@ fred,
Warmaster, BOFA, and hail caesar.
The pose of the nazgul on wings is odd is it the rider and/or the beasts's wings? Though I do like the beastie's vulture head/beak.
The Mindflayer and his minions the Quaggoth, Gith, and Frogmen are for D&D, maybe Birthright hybrid game. But I am not a stickler for historical "fantasy fiction" so they do invade Middle Earth because it is their pleasure to do so!

[Dubbya]

Love the 10mm!

Seriously, I had forgotten about the specialist games forum altogether...

[fred]

I think the Nazgûl rider’s mount is just too small and weedy - compared to the Warmaster dragons it’s a bit more like a chicken!

A mind flayer lead army is a cool idea - in our fantasy gaming we do tend to blur the lines between different ‘franchises’  - I think it was the Moria name in the thread that was making me think you were very much middle earth focused. But cool armies are always cool to have, and why can’t they fight against each other!

[Mars Miniatures]

Taken from full post here: https://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2023/08/tea-in-sahara-with-you-more-painted.html

More painted Haradrim and other oddities.

The Sand People are easily startled, but they'll soon be back, and in greater numbers.



Tea in the Sahara with you



A Wild Mumak appears!  Hi, Im Mumak. Im blocking the path.



Oliphants like to trumpet out a thunderous roar before they trample an enemy.



Apparently Pokemon trainers and Haradrim have the same response to monsters. Catch them. And then ride them!



The Naib of Sietch Jacurutu riding his Dire Jerboa and carrying a para-compass in hand. Im sure he has a sand compactor somewhere on him.



Haradrim handgunners from Sietch Jacurutu are also known as Water Stealers.   
A man's flesh is his own but his water belongs to the tribe. The Water Stealers also take the water of anyone who trespasses on their lands.



Here are their allies from Far Harad. The tribesmen of the Sub-Saharid desert.



Have you seen The Preacher?
I have seen a sandworm.
What about that sandworm?
It gives us the air we breathe.
Then why do we destroy its land?
Because Shai-Hulud orders it.



Sure they can ride a fantastical beast from fantasy, but no self respecting desert army can travel without a trustworthy camel or three.



We've fought with many men acrost the seas,
 An' some of 'em was brave an' some was not:
The Paythan an' the Zulu an' Burmese;
 But the Fuzzy was the finest o' the lot.



And here's a pic of all my current Haradrim. I think I only need to add some desert themed monsters and its complete.  A riddling Sphinx, and a Djinn perhaps? Maybe a Lamassu!

The Caravanserai is ready to cross the desert and invade Gondor!

Think, in this batter'd Caravanserai
Whose Portals are alternate Night and Day,
How Sultan after Sultan with his Pomp
Abode his destined Hour, and went his way.

Cheers,
Mar



Taken from full post here: https://mars-miniatures.blogspot.com/2023/08/tea-in-sahara-with-you-more-painted.html

[LordOdo]

The Haradrim numbers are impressive! All the way from Sothoryos; I foresee trouble for Gondor. Mammoths from North of the wall and Mumaks from the south. It would be terrible if the easterlings and dothraki would would join in as well...

(Seriously, with numbers like these I imagine there's a large battle coming. Some sort of siege?)

[Mars Miniatures]

@ LordOdo,
Yeah I guess I am ramping up the size of the games a tiny bit.  The next post will have more Gondorians.
Then after that... more Cthulhu minions - foot soldier types. Im thinking Spiders of Leng or Ghouls. Maybe both.
Id love to start a Wildling faction with wooly mammoths. But first Cathay and some Chinese type Dragon riders, some Unsullied, and Dothraki. And like you said, will the Easterlings be friends or foes? The dwarves are brave but too few in number. Gondor is going to need more allies and soon. Some ally from the Empire or Bretonnia,  maybe Westeros? I wonder who will answer the call?

[LordOdo]

"Help will always be given at Hogwarts to those who ask for it."

[Cacique Caribe]

.



We've fought with many men acrost the seas,
 An' some of 'em was brave an' some was not:
The Paythan an' the Zulu an' Burmese;
 But the Fuzzy was the finest o' the lot.

Which foot tribesmen are these here?  Who makes them?
Thanks

Dan