Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Unseen, forgotten
Chained, but consumed by fire still
A House now lies empty.
- Daughter

~*~

Somewhere in the grey forgotten borderlands between Realms, the air itself screams and blisters as though it burns. A feverish white light spills from rents that twist open as the air burns in ways that it shouldn’t, a light that chars and blackens the splinters and shards of grey rock that make up the barren scree that stretches for as far as the eye can see. The screaming reaches a crescendo, becomes more than noise. It is the sound of birth, of something entering this world through pain and suffering. The light thickens, scorches and razes everything it touches until it is blinding and painful to look at. Finally, with a sickening crack, the light disappears and in its wake leaves only blackened rock and ash, and thick coils of smoke.

The screaming remains. Becomes something lesser, something hoarser and more physical before dying into gasps.

From within the coils of smoke, which move like no smoke should, a kneeling figure appears. Slowly, so slowly, it uncoils and stands with inhuman fluidity, gaunt and long limbed. It is almost bleached of colour and its long pale red hair moves in currents not of this Realm. Mirror-masked, thin body wrapped in pale loose robes, the gaunt figure flexes hands encased in armoured gauntlets of polished ivory that shimmer with heat.

Moving through the smoke and drifting ash, other figures emerge, all as gaunt and bleached as the first. They bear long curved blades, wrap tattered robes and shards of pale armour around themselves. All are masked and wreathed in smoke.

These ghosts, these revenants, voice no warcries nor utter any prayers. They merely surround the first figure to emerge from the smoke and ash, turn blank-faced masks to it. This first gaunt revenant stirs shreds of smoke with its gauntleted hands and raises its mirror-mask to the grey skies above.

"Witness," it whispers. "Witness our return."

~*~


Daughter


Hollowed

You've got style . Will be watching this!

Evening folks.

RiTides - Thanks man, hope you like what you see coming up.

So, Born Of Ash. Kind of a successor and maybe more to the High House Of Chains. I'm not planning a full AoS gaming force - for a couple of reasons, mainly being that gaming overall doesn't have much interest for me anymore and the game mechanics of AoS just seem a bit overly simple to me. However, I do think the setting itself is pretty damn good and kudos to GW for the burning, razing and rebuilding they've done into something that given time could be rather special. There's a lot of room for expansion and change, which is a good thing for a gaming setting and I think what they've done so far with the Realm reveals and linked campaign releases is pretty cool.

Also, on the main, the new models are looking damn good. Especially the Sylvaneth. And Drycha. Crikey, that Drycha. And if the Aelfs look anywhere near as great as the Mistweaver from the Silver Tower, well, they could be something special.

In terms of my dabbling, I'll be going more along the loose lines of a Realm Of Chaos type warband, with things I want to do to fit with the story I'm envisaging. So there's a rough plan of three characters, some basic guys and something reasonably chunky. That's the plan at least, whether it actually gets done is another matter as real life tends towards the crape these days, but we shall see.

Anyways, enough blathering, here's a few teasers of stuff what I have done. Because we all love pictures don't we.


The hands of my father guide us still, from the Ash onwards


Even the Hollow have their Paragon

I did pick up a Drycha as well and my word. What a kit.

I've always been a bit dubious of GWs propensity for making larger and larger plastic kits recently but I have to say, I was wrong. They are knocking it out of the park with their big AoS kits and while they might suffer a little in terms of optional bits and pieces and flexibility in posing, they make up for it just in the amount of detail and thru actual finished look. Drycha was a joy to assemble, really simple and easy and fits together with very few visible mould lines. Even just trimming off the leaves to leave bare twisted branches gives her a great alternative look as a wintery tree, but I have hone a bit further than that. The new kits and look they are giving their AoS range is getting to be breathtakingly good - and I'm not afraid to admit that my initial 'meh' regarding the setting and look was entirely unwarranted. While the game play might not do anything at all for me, the setting and models are great in the most part. I'm definitely considering picking up some of the Revenants or Hunters to make some lesser Embers.

But on to Drycha and what I've been doing. She's at the last stage of the conversion process at the moment - all the gs work is pretty much done and the more obvious plant bits have been removed, leaving her looking angular and spiky and smoky. Just need to add some extra spines and smoke trails using her hair and other bits and sort the base. Here's a peek:


By the pricking of my thumbs, something wicked this way comes....

The slits on the helm have been filled in to give her a smooth mask and match the look of the Daughter and Paragon.

In terms of rough plan - I want to do a half dozen or so Hollowed for now, and either the same number of Revenants or a trio of Hunters - haven't decided between those kits yet, but the Hunters may win out as some big pals for Drycha. Then there's a Herald/Scout type character I want to try, based on the Death Jester or Solitaire and some scout types to follow him maybe. Still sticking with the Realm of Chaos style warband rather than any actual gaming style army.

That's all for now folks, will probably update later on tonight with proper pics of the first few completed Hollowed (sans paint), along with more storyline stuff.

C&C would be great

Cheers, Jack

Looks quite nice.

I loved the High House of Chains so I'm very excited for this one.

Very cool. Really looking forward to seeing how this develops.

EDC

I love your work, and have followed you for a long time, especially your Blood Angels.

I'll be watching this keenly.

A legion of Chained,
Sworn to a father. Consumed,
Left empty within.
~ Daughter

~*~

The borderlands that these once-Aelfs have forced their entry to, in such brutal and scorching fashion, are not entirely uninhabited. Here, between the full Realms of Shyish and Ulgu, creatures wander that are neither fully dead nor fully shadow. Trapped in the folds and tears between Realms, they exist as malformed and wizened echoes of their once-true selves, wizened bodies holding desperately to a half-lost memory of what they used to be. They are spiteful, bitter beings and they do not appreciate visitors to the barren wastes they call home. Now, close to a dozen of them throw themselves at the gaunt and tattered revenants that have found themselves in their lands.

The once-Aelf that calls herself no other name than Daughter regards the oncoming creatures with something regarding curiosity in the tilt of her mirror-masked head. They are ragged and emaciated things, dried out husks reduced to leathery skin and sparse flesh, standing almost as tall as the revenants that surround her now. She watches these things, that may have been mon-keigh once and the one hulking form that may have been what her father would have called a Kine or Orric (the word is unfamiliar in her mouth, a mere fairy-tale to her), she watches them hurl themselves closer until the stale-dust smell of them reaches her.

A flick of her long ivory covered fingers sends her own half dozen revenants gliding forward. In contrast to the jerking and angular movements of the creatures, her revenants are silent and graceful and move amidst the curling smoke and drifting ash as though part of it. Long curving ceramic blades flick out in smooth arcs and cut ragged armour, remove limbs, open bellies with the faintest of sound. Something that resembles a mix of sand and thick tar-like blood flies through the air in thin arcs and ropes as the creatures are reduced to mere pieces. Her Hollowed move as though dancing amongst the crude hacking blows of their enemy, ever silent and graceful. Within minutes, the creatures are disassembled and littering the ashen ground beneath the Holloweds feet. All expect the thing that may have been Kine once. Though withered, it still towers over the sinuous and gaunt Hollowed and keeps them at bay with wide sweeps of a ragged and ugly crescent of iron. It bellows hoarsely through a throat and dried mouth that has long forgotten how to articulate words.

Daughter watches as the Hollowed circle the creature, the blades of their draichs flickering like serpents tongues against its leathery hide. One of the Hollowed seems to misstep and is caught by the ragged arc of iron the creature wields. It folds around the weapon as the iron bites deeply into its chest, scales of bleached ivory armour spraying away. The Kine-beast croaks in frustration as the weight of the Hollowed pulls its weapon down, realises too late that its victim is clinging to the blade, impaling itself on purpose in order to trap the blade and leave the creature defenceless.

The remaining Hollowed close swiftly and the Kine-beast is hacked down in a whirling ballet of curving blades. Daughter glides to the fallen Hollowed, still twitching and curled around the ugly crescent of iron carving into it. She kneels in the baking ash of the wastes and waves aside the threads of drifting smoke rising from the deep wounds hewn into the revenant. It does not speak, merely turns its black faced mirror-mask to look at her as she places a gauntleted hand on its brow.

"Rest dutiful servant," she whispers and beneath her touch the black glass of the mask cracks and shatters, loses its mirror finish. "Rest, and rise again when called."

The fallen Hollowed lies still as Daughter rises to her feet. These Realms are not what she expected - their taste is new and different and yet achingly familiar at the same time, and they hold dangers both new and old that will test the Hollowed and the Paragon both. She flexes her long bone-clad fingers, prepares herself to tear open another gate. It will pain her greatly, but already she knows she will become accustomed to the pain and will find it easier. The first time is always the hardest but a fresh wound is easier to open again and again.

~*~



They swore to follow my father always...

When the gates of the House fell, they stood...


And the fires took everything from them, including their chains.

But they held to their vow....

Very cool conversions! Looking forward to more :-)