Von Mohnblume Line

A package arrived from Alternative Armies recently and I had the pleasure of being one of the first to see the Von Mohnblume Line , due for release later in August. These are some new sculpts and a new type of Dogman infantry for Flintloque and Slaughterloo.

The pile of minis and bases

In my package was a set of 10 figures and bases. This is sold by Alternative Armies as a 'skirmish' pack, offering a discount over buying individual figures, making it ideal for starting a new Flintloque section or a small unit for Slaughterloo. A larger 'unit' pack of 20 figures for a full Slaughterloo unit is also available at additional discount.

Right from the start I was impressed by these sculpts. I was expecting something similar to other Dogmen packs such as the recent Pudigrochumsburg range, but was pleasantly surprised to find a packet of pugs! I have a curious soft spot for small dogs, so this new addition was an unexpected and pleasant surprise!

Skirmish packs typically contain 4 command figures and 6 infantry. The command figures in the Von Mohnblune pack include an Officer, Sergeant, Standard and Musician, all pictured below.

(L-R) Sergeant, Officer, Drummer, Standard

The remaining figures in the pack are a mix of models reasonably split over 4 various poses, which I think is a generous amount of different sculpts and means there is plenty of scope for differentiating between characters in skirmish games:

6 pugs in 4 poses

These sculpts are fantastic in terms of crispness and detail. The character really comes through even before painting. That said, unpainted figures are all very well and good, but they won't be gracing my tabletop without seeing a brush! So what do they look like after I have applied my mediocre skills to them? Let's see, shall we?!:

The 10 figure unit.

From a higher angle.

As with pretty much every model I've painted for Flintloque, I really enjoyed working on these. The sculpts were crisp and clear without being overburdened by unnecessary detail and I found I could paint them well enough (to my standards at least) at a fair pace.

Here are some pictures of the front rank figures:

Pug firing musket and Sergeant

Drummer and Officer

Standard (with no flag yet!) and second pug firing

 The rear rank consists of four pugs in two different poses.
 

Group shot of rear rank

Close up of examples of each pose.

Here's one picture of the command group all together:

Von Montblume Line Command

I opted for a uniform (very) loosely based on Napoleonic soldiers from the Duchy of Nassau, part of the Confederation of the Rhine. As such, they will see action along side my Ferach elves, but it is worth noting that these figures are technically an addition to the Ostarian army and they will no doubt end up fighting alongside my other Dogmen!


So all in all these would make a splendid addition to a Slaughterloo army or make a interesting new Flintloque section. Rules specific to these figures are available in a free PDF which is available for download from Alternative Armies. For my own project, they will be proudly forming a solid and reliable battalion in my games, fighting alongside whoever I see fit! One of the things I like about the 'animal' ranges in particular is that they work well for any anthropomorphic fantasy games, so can be enjoyed by anyone who likes the figures. In fact I plan on buying more of these figures for exactly this reason.

In creating stats for Black Powder, I am looking to make a unit that is enthusiastic and dependable, while being less confident in melee due to their stature. This led me to an initial set of stats as below:

Unit: Von Mohnblume Line
Type: Regular Infantry
Armament: Smoothbore Muskets
Hand-To Hand: 4
Shooting: 3
Morale: 4+
Stamina: 3
Special: Reliable, Steady

Here is one final picture as they will be used in my games. Great figures that I am proud to own and I am confident they will perform admirably on the field of battle.

Von Mountblume Line

(Reader note: I was provided with a sample pack for the purposes of review, but my enthusiasm is entirely my own!)