I love playing WARMACHINE and HORDES, but I typically spend more time painting models than studying gameplay. I like to take my time on each model, so painting an entire army can take a while. Combined with my aversion to playing with models that aren’t painted, this means I need extra motivation to get a new army quickly assembled, painted, and on the table.

I was very interested when I heard about the WARMACHINE and HORDES holiday bundles. It was the motivation I needed to start a new army, and it gave me a welcome break from working on my large Protectorate of Menoth force.

I chose the 25-point Mercenaries holiday bundle first and foremost because they look cool. I have always loved the Steelhead Riflemen models, and the motley nature of the Mercenaries faction meant I could vary the paint scheme from model to model; a welcome change from painting my minty green and cream Protectorate forces.

I plan to grow the army beyond the initial 25 points, so I painted the Steelhead Riflemen, the Rover, and the Mule in a similar color scheme that I will apply to future Steelhead and warjack models. My intent was to give a unifying look to the army while allowing myself some liberty to play with the colors on individual models like Ashlynn d’Elyse, Rhupert Carvolo, Piper of Ord, Gorman di Wulfe, and Sylys Wyshnalyrr.

Here are a few of the painting details from my new army.

For the Steelheads and the warjacks, I used Moldy Ochre as my primary color. I chose it because I wanted an earthy paint scheme, plus I really like the color. I used Battledress Green as a base for the accent color, which fits the overall earth tone scheme and contrasts with the Moldy Ochre without being overwhelming.

On the riflemen, I used a variety of dark browns for the leather bits, which contrasts with the ochre color of their coats. Mixing them toward red hues complements the green of the armor. The blue reflection in the goggle lenses contrasts with the overall color scheme, and I think it helps draw the eye to the model’s face.

I’ve started keeping a recipe book of the paint mixtures and color schemes I use for each model so I can refer back to it as I add more models to the army. Here’s my page for the Steelheads and Mercenary warjacks.

I really wanted to make Ashlynn stand out, so instead of earth tones I chose colors that help make her pop a bit more on the tabletop. Her blue armor is a combination of Greatcoat Grey, Coal Black, and Frostbite, with Menoth White Base mixed in for highlights. I went with fiery red hair rather than the traditional blonde because the red-orange color is a nice complement to the blue armor. I also added some orange dots for texture around the red fringe of her waist cloak. I liked the effect so I repeated it on her right shoulder pad.

This project was a lot of fun for me. It was a great opportunity to put even more color theory into practice (thanks, Meg and Matt!) and begin exploring the gameplay style of a new faction. I’m pleased with how the painting turned out, and I can’t wait to add more models to my army and discover what dirty tricks these Mercenaries have in store for opponents on the tabletop.

Happy gaming!