Hobby Update: Abyssal Nagarri

Up now are two regiments of brand new Nagarri for the revamped Forces of the Abyss!

The first regiment.

These are one of three brand new units that the revamp gives us, and the one I am most excited for, so I hobbied them up first. The Models are from Mantic, coming out of the new Ambush boxes, as those are a much better value that buying the unit separately. 

Overall, the kit is a little underwhelming. There is one (!) sprue, repeated three times to get your three models for the unit. The serpentine body is mono-pose, and the humanoid torso has little divots to keep it in place, essentially making it mono-pose as well. You get three face options, and three weapon options, which, overall, feels… underwhelming for a unit. I usually like my units to be … units, with some uniformity to them, but mono-pose and weird weapons isn’t really my jam (unless you are going for a more retro look), and it seems like these would be far better as individual chariot-sized heroes than together as a unit. I have two more models that are untouched, and I’ll try for some more extensive conversion work for them, and run them as the formation unit. 

Style-wise, I’m not a fan of their creeping, almost infectious looking armor and weapons, with all the tendrils and such.. I think you could charitably argue that they unit regenerated so much that it’s mutating around stuff and absorbing armor… but it just looks messy to me, like the designer didn’t have any real art direction. Since I wanted to get these on the table quickly, I opted to not touch the armor since it was going to be a lot of work that I didn’t want to do, but I did go for a weapon-swap to make these seem a little more orderly and uniform. I sawed off the weapon heads and replaced them with old GW Ogre swords, for more of a naginata or glaive-like weapon. The second regiment may need to be repositioned at some point, as there is some serious overhang.

The second regiment. As you can see, there is crazy overhang on the sides.

Stat-wise, I’m not too thrilled with these either. With 4+ to hit and just CS1, these aren’t good hammers: they have the output of the KOM Pole-Arms regiment. They lack Nimble, and Speed 6 chariots aren’t going to be flanking anything. Defense 4 is mediocre, and this and their Nerve is on par again with KOM Pole-Arms or Shield Wall regiments, for about 50% more in price, so they definitely aren't anvils either. Their footprint is insane, with a 150mm frontage, 50% wider than an infantry regiment, and ripe for being multi-charged by anything that can reach it. Their only saving grace is Regeneration 4+ and the aura. The Aura is neat, and clearly THE reason to take the unit, as other Abyssal units with Regeneration will get the ability going on a 4+ while in range. 

Fluff-wise, they are allegedly former great and powerful Archfiends, now-cursed, and somehow crossed with snakes as well. Fluff has never been a strong-suit of Kings of War for me, but sheesh. No other Abyssal unit has the snake motif, and the official description just feels so poorly done. If the Abyssals are represented as a more random and chaotic faction (lots of regeneration rolls in-game, and a wide mix of scrounged weapons on their models, like in the Lower Abyssals kit, and the new Skinner kits), what independent archfiend is going to team up with other archfiends in order to scheme to get back on top? And all do so as a cohesive fighting unit? 

These unique units should be a step forward in the fluff, with the Abyssals continually pushing out from the Abyss, unleashing more and more terrifying units upon the world of Pannithor / Mantica and slowly driving the stakes and story forward. My fluff would be: 

Lower Abyssals are fanatical, but ill-disciplined and poorly trained, deployed by the Archfiends of the Abyss without regard for their individual safety. Some live, gaining skills and ambition, becoming skilled guards and powerful champions themselves. Others die, succumbing to the wounds suffered while laboring for the schemes of the Archfiends. Still others stumble into a third path, an affront to the natural order of the world, with grievous injuries knitting themselves back together, and not always in the correct ways.

Regeneration from the energies of the Abyss will alter the physical traits of an abyssal in time. After several regenerations, some grow brawnier, coming into their own as powerful Molochs. Some shed their intellect, becoming lean, crazed, and vicious Skinners. Some endure physical damage so severe that the regenerative process goes into overdrive, warping them into strangely serpentine creatures as their bodies vainly attempt to repair themselves. 

These are known as Nagarri, abyssal denizens whose regenerative drive is so twisted and dysfunctional that it warps reality and boosts the abilities of other abyssal units. Their bodies are so tortured that while they don’t make the most effective soldiers, their abilities to bolster nearby units makes them invaluable on the battlefield. With the Nagarri at their backs, it is only a matter of time before the Forces of the Abyss break through the sturdy fortresses of the order of the Brothermark, and spill out into the wider world.

The Nagarri are a weird unit. I'm not entirely sold on their look or their design, but that aura is certainly intriguing, and so they definitely look like something worth exploring! I have many more thoughts on the revamp of the Abyssals, but will save those for some future posts.