OGRE CARAVAN MASTERBlackblood unit
While mighty armies clash on the Empire´s border with Firstborn Knights and Elven retainers, the trade routes see a peace that seems incongruous. Caravans, loaded with goods, cross the borders unhindered: the flow of goods, the tolls and tariffs enrich both sides, and without the trade, neither realm could exist. Pack animals and carts are searched diligently, it is true; travellers may be held up, and sometimes entire caravans will be detained. But on the whole, trade continues and shows no signs of slackening. At the trade ports, one may see Firstborn merchants sharing a table and cordially swapping news with Elven and Orc caravaneers, even though, mere miles away, their brethren fight and slay each other with unabating hatred.
Not wishing to disrupt the trade, all empires of Chronopia refrain from attacking caravans openly, but that does not mean that caravaning is an easy task. Devout Blood Hunters and other marauding troops harry the trade routes, plundering victuals to feed their ravenous horde. Many local tribes make their living stealing goods from under the pickets´ noses under cover of night. Treacherous guides may lead the caravans astray. And often, a lord will hire raiders or send disguised retainers to attack and pillage a rival caravan; those raids may be easily denied, and are accepted as part of the reality of trade. Unless there is blatant proof of involvement, no one will even take the trouble to file an official complaint.
Ogre Caravan Masters are in charge of the great trade caravans of Myrmadons, Kutara and pack slaves. Often, several clients will pool their resources to obtain a Caravan Master´s services to carry their goods along a trade trail. Theirs is a dangerous business; they have to plan routes, smell out traps and ambushes, hire guards to repel would-be raiders, organise the caravan´s defenses, keep the discipline, cajole the civilian passengers and dignitaries, avoid diplomatic blunders in enemy territory, judge the character of local guides, employ scouts to ride ahead and bring tidings. They have to decide where to rest, when to move ahead, which rumours to trust, which areas to avoid. All this calls for a shrewd tactical mind: A Caravan Master must be good judge of character, and a strategist rivalling the graduates of the Emperor´s Academy of War. And since trade posts abound with rumours, more often than not a Caravan Master is also a spy for his Emperor, cultivating a web of informants at every port and waystation.
The Ogre Caravan Master wears little in the way of armour. He is armed with a broad-bladed falchion (often a showpiece of his wealth, lavishly embossed and studded with jewels) and an alchemical hand rocket which is lit by a black-powder fuse. While notoriously inaccurate, this weapon´s loud whine and spectacular explosion serves to scare off raiders and hill tribes. Occasionally, the rocket is also used for signalling purposes.
Ogre Caravan Master | CC | MW | PW | Ld | Ac | W | St | Mv | A | Def | S | Cost |
Caravan Master | 14 | 10 | - | 16 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 20 | -2 | 2 | 62 |
Special Rules:The Ogre Caravan Master is immune to Panic.
Structure:INDIVIDUAL
Equipment:The Ogre Caravan Master is armed with a Falchion and a single Hand Rocket. He may be bought more Hand Rockets at 12 points apiece.
FalchionHand RocketCR | MX | RM | Dam |
6 | 18 | -4 | 12(x2) |
It takes 2 actions to fire the Hand Rocket.
The Hand Rocket may only be fired once and is then used up.
The Hand Rocket uses the Explosion template.
All models who are hit by the template, regardless if they make their Armour roll, are knocked down and must spend their next action standing up.
The Hand Rocket causes a Panic test to anyone within 6“ of the blast radius´edge.
The wielder of the Hand Rocket causes Fear to any unit that has already lost a model to the Rocket´s explosion or failed the Panic test, for the rest of the game.
On a fumble, the Rocket has misfired and ignited the entire bundle. Center the template on the firing model and work out damage for all remaining Hand Rockets. All Rockets are used up.
http://tritex-games.co.uk/store/product.php?id=1222
This fellow may have the making of a good Caravan Master proxy. It is hard to judge a model´s size from a picture, but since it´s billeted as an Ogre Mage, it might be tall enough to be an Ogre. One would probably have to use a small needle file to get the teeth down to size, and cut off the horns, but otherwise the miniature needs little change.
If you insist on fitting the miniature to the look of your troops and don´t mind a bit of work, you might saw off the head and replace it with an Ogre Heavy Infantry Leader´s; maybe you can saw chunks off the right shoulder and use the Leader´s shoulder pad as well.
http://www.miniature-giant.com/ogre-mage-Reaper-Dark-Heaven-Legends-DHL-sku-2486-pr-506.html
Alternatively this one might be a good one, though it looks a bit unkempt for a dignified Ogre trader of the Blackblood Empire. One would have to shorten the sword´s handle, file down the teeth, horns and ears, and maybe add robes or pantaloons with Green Stuff.
Since its arms are raised away from the torso, you could also cut it in two at the waist and mount the upper body on an Ogre Heavy Infantry Leader´s legs.