GoreBeast Chariot

The chaos army continues to grow with this gorebeast chariot the latest addition. I have to admit that when this model was originally released I was a little uncertain about it. Like so many of the newer kits it seemed a bit over the top for my tastes, not in the same WTF-league as the war shrine or the slaughterbeast, but still a bit "too spiky". If I'm really honest I thought the gorebeast looked a bit goofy too. As I wasn't playing Warhammer at the time it was very easy to shrug my shoulders and pass it by. However, now that I am back into the game, I was keen to give my chaos army a boost with some non-infantry units since that's all I ever seem to paint. I looked around at all the options and decided to take a punt on the chariot kit. I am so glad I did.

As usual, the kit is a wonder of engineering and design. All the pieces slot together easily and with little need for instruction (though once or twice I think a little hint on the sequencing of multi part assembly would not go amiss). The chains and straps securing the beast to the chariot require a little care, but it all fits with no real problems. I kept the optional bits to a minimum, there's plenty of detail on the kit without extra flags, chains, capes and the like. I also trimmed down the trophy poles so that the height of the models is constrained. My number one pet hate on the wargaming table is overly tall or awkward sticking out bits, just asking to be snagged, knocked or snapped.

Painting wise I kept it simple. I started by washing the armour in greens and browns, but then decided to add some purple for a change and it developed organically from there. I originally wanted it to look as thought it could be marked by either of Slaanesh or Nurgle, but in the end decided this was too disparate and went for the Dark Prince. Once I had settled on the purple of the metals, the green of the beast was a natural contrast.  The armour of the crew is a mix of the purple tinted silver plus some black and grey plates, though they don't show very well in the pictures. The warrior is not glued in place; theoretically I can use the chariot as the mount for a character and I have often wondered about a sorceror on wheels. I might give it a whirl some time.

The unused parts will go to another chariot - one of the reasons the kit attracted me was the fact that I could use the horses on an old metal chariot body. It's not quite two for the price of one, but they are a nice bonus. Even nicer is the number of extra warrior heads in the kit - a choice of two for the charioteer and six for the chaos warrior. One has ridiculously large horns and will possibly never be used, but the other four spare heads are a very welcome addition to my pile of bare heads for my next warrior regiment.