Old World, New Tricks: Part One

A tale of three gamers, retro style.

Welcome to the inaugural issue of this series: Old World: New Tricks!

In this series, three intrepid wargamers (read, hoary old gits) will finally be taking the collective plunge into the Old World. For two of us its a return to a childhood love; for another, this is a brave new (old?) frontier.

The format for this series is pretty simple: a monthly update as we build, paint and play with our burgeoning forces of square-based heroes. Think, the classic Tale of Four Gamers format from White Dwarfs of yore, but likely without as many bacon butties...

Without further ado, lets meet the intrepid hobbyists setting off in their wayback machine, to a world of square bases, guessed ranges and a whole lot of heroic challenges - to see what armies they'll be bringing to the table...

"Warhammer Fantasy has almost always been my tabletop miniature wargame of choice. Whilst Warhammer 40,000 was my first experience in the hobby, it quickly became overshadowed by my interest in Wood Elves, Orcs and Goblins and finally Dwarfs. It’s the stout and venerable Dwarfs that I am returning to now that Games Workshop have officially resurrected their oldest setting as The Old World.

"As mentioned above, I collected Dwarfs back in the day as a teenager but was terrible for not painting them. After re-engaging with the hobby as a Tyranids player, and making a conscious effort to be better at painting my miniatures, I also wanted to paint my truly ancient pile of shame. Since early 2024, I’ve very slowly been including the odd dwarf or two in whatever painting project I've had on the go. Last month I finally managed to complete a full unit of my old metal Ironbreakers who now proudly sit fully painted in my Warhammer cabinet. This unit has always been a favourite of mine, and the opportunity to actually field them again is just a little bit exciting. I just hope they don’t get flattened immediately by the Bretonnians and High Elves that they’ll meet on the field of battle. Otherwise names will be added to my Book of Grudges.

"I just hope my beloved ironbreakers don’t get flattened immediately by the Bretonnians and High Elves that they’ll meet on the field of battle. Otherwise names will be added to my Book of Grudges."

Tom showing us all up by actually doing some painting this month.

"Whilst Warhammer is an expensive hobby, and starting a new project is generally guaranteed to set you back a few hundred pounds, this one shouldn’t be all that pricey. I’m hoping to only purchase the odd extra model or two and some paint. In fact, I already have over 1000 points with all the old models I still own! But that doesn’t mean I can’t treat myself to something new. After I’ve painted most of what I have of course..."

Tom's Ironbreakers. Fresh from 2003 and still the bane of my existence - Alex

"I'm an unusual convert to TOW having never played or even heard of the original WHFB whilst the game was on its first run. As such I've no nostalgia for the game but it does scratch a different itch for me in particular: cavalry.

"Having been introduced to Warhammer in the age of 8th/9th edition 40k and Age of Sigmar, when GW's games primarily only offered squad and skirmish games, proper cavalry was, unfortunately, off the table. Yes both 40K and AoS have their own versions of cavalry, but I have always found them to be just a bit light touch.

It's quite hard to convey the size of this box...

Interestingly the smaller sprues came in these zip lock bags. Seems oddly unprofessional for GW

My first ever whippy sticks and blast markers!

What it's all about, square bases!

For Bretonnia the first model I built had to be a knight.

I'll be seeing a lot of these sprues over the coming months

"So when GW decided to relaunch back into rank and flank games with TOW they couldn't have picked a better starter army, for me, than Bretonnia. Classic medieval fantasy Knights fighting for chivalry and the lady: it's a great proposition for those who are prehaps less up to speed with the factions and demeanor of the old WHFB. A general commanding blocks of knights, archers and infantry with a grand strategic view fits me down to a tee.

"Classic medieval fantasy Knights fighting for chivalry and the lady: it's a great proposition for those who are prehaps less up to speed with the factions and demeanor of the old WHFB."

"My journey in this Tale of Three Warlords will thus be that of the newbie. What does the Bretonnia Core box offer to get those fresh to TOW off the ground? Does it offer a beginner friendly easing in or an expertise required difficulty spike? I've secured my self a copy of the box (at a bargain rate I might add) and I'm excited to find out."

Square bases! Such excitmenet.

"I had a plethora of half-painted fantasy projects back in the day from a childhood built playing Warhammer Fantasy, but my High Elves were probably my favourite army of the lot. There's something quintessentially fantasy about ranks of pristine, gleaming elven soldiers, fighting in perfect order that really speaks to me. So it is back to Ulthuan that I go.*

"The deal was sealed when I realised that the Elven Arcane Journal allows for running a unique, Chrace-oriented force. The army is centred around the eponymous White Lions and their herculean heroics, with a few unique new units thrown in for good measure. Well well well, I thought to myself. An army with rules for units that don't exist unless you kitbash them, that fits a limited force with an incredibly strong theme? Woah there. A man can only get so excited.

"An army with rules for units that don't exist unless you kitbash them, that fits a limited force with an incredibly strong theme? Woah there. A man can only get so excited."

Sleeves? Puffed. Outfit? On point.

"To start out, I've sourced myself a box of white lions, that I've already started on kitbashing half of into Chracian Woodsmen, as well as the start of a nice big brick of axe-toting warriors to form the core of my list. I've also nabbed Korhil Lionmane to paint - though he may not be going onto a base just yet, for reasons that will become clear in time! The model is a little dated (look at the size of that face, the girth on those hands!) but I'm happy to embrace the retro vibe of the Old World, so this little metal brawler was always going to be part of the army.

"While I'm envisaging a pretty White-Lion-centric feel to the army (at least initially), I'll still definitely be grabbing myself a High Elf Prince on Dragon in the near future because that model is incredible. But that's for a future installment; for now, I've got lion pelts to paint."

---

We'll be back next month for our next update and to see how our initial (or continuing...) painting is progressing. Until then, don't be a stranger on socials!

Alex, John and Tom

*Sorry, Ogre Kingdoms, Warriors of Chaos and Vampire Counts - you guys will have to wait a little while longer for a resurrection.