Circus of Paint Posted March 16, 2017 Share Posted March 16, 2017 Hi all, One of my favourite things about Age of Sigmar is how GW have taken everything that made the Old World great, expanded it great and went wild! Just looking at some of the more reimagined concepts that have come out of the Design Studio over the last two years (Ironjaws, Fyreslayers, Sylvaneth, Kharadron Overlords etc.) - I find it fascinating how they've taken some of the more classic niche concepts and and gone to town with them! Looking back through years and editions past, around the 6th edition of Warhammer, there were a number of more "experimental" army lists that were exciting thematic twists on the long-standing factions. My absolute favourite had to be the Zombie Pirates of the Vampire Coast - published as part of the Lustria campaign. You remember them, right? Zombie Pirates were a concept I dabbled with a good number of years back (2010 or so?) for (classic) Warhammer Quest - even made some test models which have long since been lost to time. With Age of Sigmar however and the flexibility it brings with both model-count, story, background and modelling opportunities - what better time to give them a good shake up! Rather than jump straight into buying various bitz and gluing them together, it would be remiss of me not to put some real thought into it first. Since their maniacal founder and master Luthor Harkon was long since vanquished in the End Times, and the Vampire Coast of Lustria was also destroyed alongside the rest of the Old World - we're going to have to do some serious thinking about Zombie Pirates and how they would actually fit into the Mortal Realms. "Across the Mortal Realms, the dead do not rest easy. The vast majority of the countless deceased are claimed and brought back to unholy life by the whims of Nagash, the Lord of the Dead. There are other long-lost souls that remain forgotten however, buried deep in the ink-black darkness of the countless oceans that separate the vast continents that make up each of the eight Realms. Untouched only for the decaying clamour of the sea-salt and the brine, these gaunt former-shells of those lost or killed off-land lay still, waiting for something to stir them from their watery graves… Whilst many a learned scholar will tell you that the Realms of Shyish are where all forms of undeath permeate from, there are those less-noticeable winds from those haunted netherworlds that carry the unholy scent of reanimation elsewhere. Where these macabre winds of death go, they bring back those who feel its’ cold, clammy embrace. Thus so, when such unnatural gusts cross over the vast sunken depths of the Mortal Realms, there are always some of those lost and forgotten ready to answer the call of undeath. Those who drag themselves from the briny abyss are known collectively as “Drownwalkers”. They come in many forms and with many names, and from just as many long-lost lives and backgrounds. Many were mere Mortals, toiling away on their primitive ships of timber-wood and iron, often victims or perpetrators of piracy and sea-crimes. Others used to be Aelves, especially the notorious corsairs and reavers of the Scourge Privateers. Not even their inhuman agility and malicious blade-skill can outmatch an unseen knife in the back or a musket-ball to the skull. Indeed, many of those who eventually return as Drownwalkers are those who were victims of war – killed in eternal battle or by cold, calculated naval execution. Their now-lifeless bodies cast over-deck to an ignominious and supposedly-permanent rest submerged under the cold stillness of the watery depths." That's the initial piece of background that I've come up with. These aren't Zombies that are raised and manipulated by calculating Deathmages. These are more unnatural anomalies, dragging themselves from their sunken graves wherever the magical touch of death goes. I'm also going to start adding in more how these differ from standard Zombies (Deathwalkers) as these ones are more autonomous in their ways - acting upon their callous and vicious instincts of their former cut-throat lives as pirates and reavers. Once a pirate, always a pirate - alive or undead! - - - This is where you, the lovely TGA community come in! I need ideas, discussion, critiques, concepts, inspiration etc. I'd really love to hear all your thoughts. I can't be the only Zombie Pirate fan around here? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thundercake Posted March 17, 2017 Share Posted March 17, 2017 I think this is great. I love Zombie Pirates and wish I would've had the time back in 8th to build at least Luthor, a ghost ship, and a company of pirates. Second, I love the story and effort you have put into this so far. It reminds me of the start to things I have put up on my blog (but with turning Devoted of Sigmar up to 11 instead of Zombie Pirates). I think it will be interesting to see how you develop the leaders and allegiance abilities as you are going with reanimated that are autonomous or semi-autonomous. Maybe they are driven by the quest for gold or a paymaster, or captains, even in undeath carry respect and command. Maybe you can have some sort of trait with related to mutiny, where if a unit loses combat and is within 6" of a captain model, instead of losing models in battle shock, they do that many wounds to their captain instead? Maybe there is some inspiration to be drawn from Pirates of the Caribbean with how leaders work or how curses keep them going? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circus of Paint Posted March 19, 2017 Author Share Posted March 19, 2017 I'm sure I'll be plenty more inspired after seeing the upcoming PotC film! Allegiences are something I've really not though about - starting from the ground up with the most basic concepts. No plan for any actual leaders, as I don't consider Drownealkers to be any sort of (organised) military force, merely a sporidic force of nature. The closest thing to any sort of "leader" type would be the Ship-Wights (former Mortal pirate captains or Aelf Fleetmasters). Ship-wights have no ability to command themselves but are mostly present as to add some variation in weapons and/or abilities. A good chance to dig through the old ZP Magic Item list! Glad you like the background piece, I'll do some more soon. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Circus of Paint Posted March 19, 2017 Author Share Posted March 19, 2017 Carrying on with fleshing out concepts, this is my re-imagining of the "Bloated Corpse" unit entry from the original list. The name and floating-concept actually came from a test model I made a good number of years back. Rather than just a standard "fat zombie", the Bloated Corpse was actually levitating off the base slightly (in this case thats to some broken flagstones and Green Stuff seaweed)! Imagine a Zombie with a pot-belly to make a Plaguebearer jealous, trapped drowning at the bottom of a deep body of water (except the water is not there and its all above ground.) Anyway...on with the show... DRYFTERS Bloat-kyn, Belly-bouys (informal)…. “One of the more commonly-sighted variants in a Drownwalker attack are collectively known as “Dryfters”. Unlike the gaunt, enmacipated un-mariners that make up the bulk of the damned, Dryfters lurch from the sea swollen with noxious gases and liquefying tissues, that seeps from their bloated, tattered forms. Dryfters fight not with their bare, broken hands but with the agonising bile-contents of their engorged stomachs –projecting their agonising brine-soaked innards at those foolish enough to attack them hand-to-hand. Perhaps due to their gaseous cadaver-forms or as an unique side effect of the Shyish death-winds that bought back back from their watery graves, Dryfters truly earn their names from the strange way they unnaturally float and drift towards their prey. First-hand accounts have reported how they seem to almost be fighting through an invisible current, slowly but surely clawing their way through the nether-tide to engage their target. It is preferable by far to fight such creatures at a distance, for when slain, a Dryfter’s tortured form disintegrates in a poisonous shower of decomposing internal organs, diseased fluids and acid-churned bile.” - - - Last bit there was modified from the original ZP list, but the rest is all mine. When I was writing this my head, I had more of a black-powder origin for them. One day I might jot down the torture method of "kegging" I made up to justify why Dryfters are so explosive.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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