Fun With Skaven

The 17th Century philosopher Thomas Hobbes once described the life of man as "nasty, brutish and short". He wasn't writing the Skaven Codex, surprisingly, but he might as well have been. The skaven are one of Games Workshop's best original ideas and, being vicious rat-men, fit well into the run-down, Grimms' Tales feel of Mordheim. I'm less keen on the bigger skaven, but in a skirmish game, they make a lot of sense.

I made some skaven years ago, when I was playing Mordheim against a friend. They got wiped out very quickly, but I dug out the models this week and gave them another go. They are plastic gutter runners, and have a slightly goofy villainy that I like. The assassin/ninja style of the models fits the setting well.

I changed the bases from small square ones to larger circular bases, like I've been using for the goblins. They're made by Renedra, and the greater size makes the models feel less "squashed".

Anyway, here they are. As ever, the black/grey is a bit washed out.

These are the bases, with extra detritus.

Here are two night runners of Clan Destyn, armed with knives and what's either a throwing star or a sharpened cog (or the lid off a tin can).

And here is a more high-ranking assassin (he gets his own cloak!) with metal claws, and a lowdown minion with a spear and shield.