After the comet struck Mordheim, a young man-eater named Oraag traveling through the Empire was hired by a mercenary warband, to guard the captain while they were searching for Wyrdstone. Oraag found the glittering of these stones to his liking, and took some shards with him when returning to his tribe. The Wyrdstone didn't interest the fellow ogres at all, except a butcher called Horgh. He asked Oraag to give him one shard and did something very typical to an ogre - he swallowed it! He instantly felt sick, fell into a fit of convulsions and lost consciousness. Two days none of the ogres knew, whether Horgh is going to wake up or not. But did wake up on the third day and claimed that he spoke with the Great Maw, and received its blessing. So he called for Oraag wishing to speak with him.

No one knows what has been discussed then, as even the helping Gnoblars were sent out not to be witnesses. But the next day Oraag left the tribe and brought more shards back from Mordheim. It didn't take long for Horgh to control the power he gained from the stones; he quickly was given the title "Prophet of the Maw" and became the Slaughtermaster of his tribe. Oraag's services were not forgotten. With the help of Horgh and his freshly gained powers Oraag became the tyrant of the Stone-Eaters.

Understanding the importance of Wyrdstone more man-eaters began to journey towards Mordheim in search of the valuable stones. More butchers started to learn the art of Wyrdstone eating and soon it became a common practice. The word spread very quickly among the ogres kingdoms and other tribes also began to seek the stones.

So it is a tradition now among the Stone-Eaters, that if a young man-eater wants to quickly earn fame and favor of the butchers, he will gather a band of young Ogres and head for Mordheim. If he returns successful, he gains respect and the butchers will mark him for greatness, but not many return from their quest for fame.

Choice of Warriors:

• Man-eater-Kin: Each warband has to have one man-eater-kin. No more, No less! He starts with 20 exp points.
• Butcher-Kin: Your warband can include one Butcher-kin. He starts with 11 exp pts.
• Ogre Runt: Your warband can include up to 2 ogre runts. They start with 0 exp pts.
• Gnoblar Trappers: Your warband can include one Gnoblar Trappers. He starts with 0 exp points.
• Ogre Bulls: Your warband can include up to 5 Ogre bulls.
• Leadbelchers: Your warband can include up to 2 Leadbelchers.
• Fighting Gnoblars: Any number of models can be Fighting Gnoblars. Remember though that you cannot have more than twice as many Gnoblars as you have ogres in your warband. Every Gnoblar counts towards this limit, not only the fighting ones, equipment Gnoblars too!
  

Special Rules:

• Huuuuge: Ogres are big, massive and frightening creatures. All ogre models cause fear. All ogres are Large targets. Ogres also ignore all alone tests. An ogre can never have Ithilmar or Gromril or heavy amour - they don't make it in such sizes! All ogres have a warband rating of 20.
• All to Easy: It is nothing unusual for an ogre to slap a man. He does that all to often and doesn't learn much new from that. All Ogres receive half the experience points for taking a man-sized models (like on 20 or 25mm bases) Out Of Action. They still receive the full experience point for taking a mounted model or a monster Out Of Action. Also ogre henchmen and heroes apart from the runts receive half the experience point for surviving the battle, unless they got Out Of Action during that battle. Then they receive normal points for that.
• Rout Tests: The ogres don't care that much about Gnoblars. Gnoblars taken Out Of Action don't count for any routing purposes. The opposing needs to take 25% of your ogres Out Of Action in order to force you to make a rout test or voluntarily rout. Example: A warband consisting of 5 ogres and 10 Gnoblars routs after two ogres are taken Out Of Action, but a warband with 3 ogres and 4 Gnoblars needs rolling after one of the ogres is taken Out Of Action.
• Gluttony: Ogres have big stomachs. And need to eat much more than the average human. After selling you Wyrdstone (sending it home, and receiving gc to buy resources), you HAVE TO buy food for your ogres, each ogre needs to eat one ration. A ration for one ogre costs 6 gc. If you cannot afford that, then you can choose to eat one Gnoblar - it gives you one ration. If you don't have enough Gnoblars left, then you must sacrifice one of your ogres (your choice) to be eaten. In this case, he will give you 5 rations. You retain any equipment the unlucky ogre had, and remember that your leader cannot be eaten. Another way to get food rations: If your Ogre warband wins a battle then all enemy Heroes, Hired Swords and Henchmen that were killed in hand-to-hand combat with an Ogre (as a result of a unlucky injury table roll, not if only taken Out Of Action) or
  captured in the battle may be eaten! All human sized models are worth two rations, horses and other mounts are worth three rations and multi-wound creature on big bases is worth 5 rations. You don't receive any equipment the eaten models had - it is discarded. Also if Straggler or Prisoners is rolled on the exploration chart, Ogres may eat the unlucky individuals, the straggler is worth one ration and prisoners are worth 2D3 rations. Any unused rations are lost, unless you have a butcher in your warband (see below). Note: Any member of your warband that gets killed in a fight might be eaten too!
• Don't Fight with Eating Knives: Ogres don't use daggers for fighting, just for eating. They don't carry them on the battlefield. If forced to, by loosing a weapon or don’t carrying any weapon, they will fight unarmed. But since their physical strength the -1S penalty does not apply, but the +1 enemy amour save still does. They may make more than one unarmed attack, depending on their Attacks value. Note that you cannot combine this unarmed attack with another weapon, so it doesn't count as an additional attack like the dagger would. It can only be made if the ogre doesn't have any other weapons at his disposal.
• Distasteful Company: Most hired swords will refuse to work for the Ogres, as they know that they are just as likely to eat them as fight with them. Ogre warbands may only hire the following hired swords: Pit Fighter, Ogre Bodyguard and Ninja Gnoblar (if you use him).
• Gnoblars: Gnoblars aren't the bravest when it comes to fighting. Some of them prefer to hide themselves in a hole, rather than to get hurt. When shooting at any Gnoblar that is behind cover the enemy gets an additional -1 to hit. This bonus is not cancelled by the trick shooter skill the enemy might posses. Gnoblars never block line of sight to other models and don’t they don't count as cover for other models unless other Gnoblars. Each Gnoblar has a warband rating of 3. Gnoblars can never become leaders.
• Not Really a Threat: Gnoblars are often ignored when dealing with something as frightening as an ogre. A Gnoblar may be attacked only if any ogres involved in that combat are either Knocked Down, Stunned, or there are any ogres at all. If the ogre stands up, then Gnoblars must be ignored in order to strike the bigger threat. Also a Gnoblar can never be shot at when there is an ogre model nearer than the Gnoblar.
  

Starting Experience:

• Man-eater-Kin start out with twenty experience.
• Butcher-Kin start out with eleven experience.
• Ogre Runt start out with zero experience.
• Gnoblar Trappers start out with zero experience.
• Ogre Bulls start out with unknown experience.
• Leadbelchers start out with unknown experience.
• Fighting Gnoblars start out with unknown experience.
  

Maximum characteristic values for Ogres and Gnoblars.

Profile	M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
Ogre	6	6	4	5	5	5	5	5	9
Gnoblar	4	5	5	3	3	2	6	3	7

Ogre Skill Tables

• The Man-eater-Kin may choose from the Combat, Strength or Special Skills.
• Butcher-Kin may choose from the Combat, Strength or Special Skills.
• Ogre Runts may choose from the Strength or Special Skills.
• Gnoblars may choose from the Shooting or Speed Skills
• No other skills may be chosen when promoting a henchman to a hero.
  

Ogre Equipment List

Heroes

He's the one aspiring for fame and wealth. When leaving his tribe and heading for Mordheim he shows independence and confidence. Following the path of Oraag, he might become a tyrant one day too.

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
6	4	3	4	4	3	3	2	8

Weapons/Armor: A Man-eater-Kin may be equipped with weapons and armor chosen from the Ogre Bulls’ equipment list.

Special Rules:

• Leader: Any models of the warband within 6" of the Man-eater-Kin can use his leadership instead of their own. If the Man-eater-Kin dies, the new ogre chosen as leader will gain access to man-eater equipment/skills.
• Huuuge, All to Easy, Don't Fight with Eating Knives: See special rules.
  

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
6	3	2	4	4	2	3	2	7

Weapons/Armor: A Butcher-Kin may be equipped with weapons and armor chosen from the Butchers' equipment list.

Special Rules:

• Gastromancy: Wizard: A Butcher-Kin is a wizard and uses Gastromancy Magic. See Gastromancy Magic below for details.
• Food Preservation: The Butcher allows you to store any unused rations for later use (eat). You may store up to 5 rations. Note them in your stored equipment list.
• Starting Ingredients: When you hire a butcher then he comes equipped with the following ingredients: D3 Disembodied Limbs, D3 Bedrocks, D3-1 bulls heart, one dry bone, one troll guts if you roll 4+ on a D6. You may also buy up to two bulls hearts and one troll guts at their base cost when hiring a new butcher.
• Huuuge, All to Easy, Don't Fight with Eating Knives: See special rules.
  

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
6	2	2	3	4	2	2	1	6

Weapons/Armor: Ogre Runts may be equipped with weapons and armor chosen from the Ogre Bulls’ equipment list.

Special Rules:

• Not Huuuge: Ogre Runts don't follow the rules included in the 'Huuuge' rule. They do not cause Fear, are not large targets, have to take all alone tests and have a warband rating of 10. They still cannot wear heavy armor though.
• All to Easy, Don't Fight with Eating Knives: See special rules.
  

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
4	2	3	3	3	1	3	1	6

Weapons/Armor: Gnoblar Trappers may be equipped with weapons and armor chosen from the Gnoblars’ equipment list.

Special Rules:

• Lil' Explorer: If the trappers wasn't taken Out Of Action, then in the exploration phase the trapper can roll two dice and pick either as the result.
• Gnoblars, Not Really a Threat: See special rules.

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
6	3	2	4	4	2	2	2	7

Weapons/Armor: A Man-eater-Kin may be equipped with weapons and armor chosen from the Ogre Bulls’ equipment list.

Special Rules:

• Leader: Any models of the warband within 6" of the Man-eater-Kin can use his leadership instead of their own. If the Man-eater-Kin dies, the new ogre chosen as leader will gain access to man-eater equipment/skills.
• Huuuge, All to Easy, Don't Fight with Eating Knives: See special rules.
  

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
6	2	2	4	4	2	2	1	7

Weapons/Armor: Leadbelchers may only be equipped with an Ogre Cannon.

Special Rules:

• No Ambitions: The cannon is the only thing the Leadbelchers would ever like to have. They never benefit from the 'that lad's got talent' rule. If you roll that result then re-roll it.
• Huuuge, All to Easy, Don't Fight with Eating Knives: See special rules.
  

M	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld
4	2	2	2	3	1	3	1	5

Weapons/Armor: Fighting Gnoblars may be equipped with weapons and armor chosen from the Gnoblars’ equipment list.

Special Rules:

• Gnoblars, Not Really a Threat: See special rules.

Hired Swords

Ogres' Special Equipment

Ogre Cannon; ?gc; Availability: Rare ?
"He took dat from dah imperial armory, he fills it up wife black powder an bric-a-brac an he shoots it at people.... yeah I don’t understand im much neither ." Only Leadbelchers may use it, and I mean that! No one else can use it, even with weapons training. It cannot be sold anyway. It works similar to a blunderbuss. Draw a straight line 12" long and 40mm (ogre base) wide from the cannon. Every model in this path is hit with S4 and armor piercing (additional -1 to enemy's save). Models in cover are hit on a 4+, hidden ones are unaffected. It takes a very long time to reload the cannon so it can be fired only once per battle. In close combat treat it like an ogre club, which requires two hands to use.

Belly Plate; 30+2D6 gc; Availability: Rare 10
For ogres, their belly is the most important part of the body, in fact more important than the head! Some ogres like to wear great belly plates blessed by the prophets of the maw that they treat as lucky charms. Gives you +1 armor save and you can ignore the first hit received in battle on a roll of 4+. The model cannot wear heavy armor as long as it’s having a belly plate. Note: Having a lucky charm and a belly plate wont give you any additional bonus. Only one roll against the first hit can be made!

Iron Fist; 20 gc; Availability: Rare 8
"Nuffin scares the wee folk more dan an ogres fist coated in spikes, blades and armor ... flyin twards der heads. Scares a few big folk too....." An ogre can only ever have one Iron Fist. You can use it either as a buckler or a second hand weapon. Choose every HtH phase. You can only use it once per HtH phase, so if you try to parry with it then you cannot attack with it and vice versa! It counts as a bladed weapon for critical hits purposes if you use those additional charts.

Cathayan Longsword; 35+2D6 gc; Availability: Rare 11
"This here is the best sword yer ever gunnah see an ogre use, its made in dah east across the mountans and even past the maw. Deez are rare in dis part of the world, wich means the locals wont know wut hit em." This finely crafted sword stays forever sharp and thus has the cutting edge special rule (-1 to save). As it is made from a similar metal to Ithilmar it also grants +1I to the attacks made using it. You can parry with this sword as normal.

Handgun; 35 gc; Availability: Rare ?
Treat the handgun exactly as a pistol, only with 24" range. So yes, you can move and shoot with it!

Brace of Handguns; 70 gc; Availability: Rare ?
You have to find both handguns separate and then stick them together to act as a brace. Works exactly like a brace of pistols, only the range is significantly higher.

Gnoblars
Every Gnoblar must be represented on the battlefield as a model. They are Gnoblars in all respects: They do count towards the maximum number of models, and remember you cannot have more than twice as many Gnoblars than you have ogres! They use the fighting Gnoblars stat line and come equipped with a dagger. You can 'attach' a Gnoblar to the ogre in whose position the Gnoblar is. In this case the Gnoblars stays in base-to-base contact with the ogre and moves with him, using his M value. That represents the Gnoblar riding on the shoulder of the ogre. You can detach the Gnoblar at any time, by placing him 1" away from the ogre. After that the Gnoblar cannot move further this turn. They use the henchmen injury table. Each Ogre hero can be equipped with up to 2 Gnoblars, the butcher with up to 3.

• Wyrdstone Gnoblar; 25+D6gc; Rare: 9
  Allows you to add +1/-1 to any dice rolled when searching for Wyrdstone if the Gnoblar didn't go Out Of Action. Can only be taken once by the man-eater-kin.
• Lookout Gnoblar; 20 gc; Rare: 7
  The Gnoblar tries to protect his master from missile fire. If the ogre is hit by any ranged attack, roll a D6. On a 5+ the Gnoblar jumps in between and roll to wound, injury etc. on the Gnoblar instead of the ogre. The look out Gnoblar must be within 2" of his master to use that ability.
• Luck Gnoblar; 20+D6 gc; Rare: 8
  Allows to re-roll any single D6 during the battle (not during post-battle sequence), as long as he is within 6" of his master, and still on the table. It can a be a D6 being a part of a 2D6 roll, 3d6 etc.
• Sacrificial Gnoblar; 10+2D6 gc; Rare: 7
  Can only be taken by the butcher. Must stay within 2" of his master. Maybe used in either of two ways: when casting a spell it may be used to cast 3D6 and discard the lowest as the result, or to double the range of the spell (declare that before rolling). The butcher may use (eat) only one Gnoblar per spell. After being eaten the Gnoblar is obviously removed from the table and rooster.

Ogres' Special Skills

• Been There, Learned That: the man-eater-kin may only take this skill once. It allows him to immediately take ONE skill from the shooting or academic skill list. Remember, one only once!! Note: treat Pistolier as 'handguneer'.
• Battle Cry: The Ogre lets cry an enormous roar causing fear in the most courageous of foes. All enemies within 8" of the Ogre must take a fear test as if a fear-causing opponent had charged them. If failed, the model(s) will only hit enemy models (through combat or shooting) on a roll of a 6 next turn. One Ogre may only possess this skill at a time and that Ogre may only use this skill once per battle. Enemy models immune to fear don't have to test.
• Determined: May only be taken by the leader. The warband may re-roll their first failed rout test, unless the leader is taken Out Of Action.
• Bull's Charge: Can only used by an ogre having a belly plate. When charging more than 6" away, he can use this ability instead of his normal attacks. Make one attack at +1 to hit. If you hit then, the model is automatically Knocked Down, roll to wound at the ogres S, if you wound then the unfortunate enemy becomes Stunned. This special attack is resolved before any others. If you use this ability when charging into an existing combat, then randomly determine which fighting model is hit.
• Combat Training: May only be taken by a runt. It enables him to choose combat skill from now on.
• Hardened Stomach: Butcher only. The stomach gets hardened after eating various things. Count only every second spell the butcher tries to cast for the purpose of consulting the Indigestion table after the game.
• Wyrdstone Eater: The Butcher learned how to control the powers that one can gain by eating Wyrdstone. Now he can use the seventh spell from the lore of gastromancy listed below. He must have the Wyrdstone shard in his equipment, and if he goes Out Of Action, any remaining shard he had can be captured just like in the Wyrdstone Hunt scenario. Wyrdstone can also be eaten in conjunction with an ingredient to power up the spell. The spell has double range, and throw 3D6 and pick the two higher as the result. But if it still misfires then to addition to the normal results, add another dice to the indigestion dice pool.

Gastromancy Magic

• Ingredient (I) - you need to eat that in order to cast the spell
• Casting Value (C) - that's the number you have to roll on 2D6 for the spell to work as desired.
• Miscast Value (M) - you should avoid rolling that or less when casting the spell.
• Miscast result - check that out to see what can go wrong when performing gut magic.

How is the spell cast then?

Indigestion Pile

0-8	The butcher recovers fully.
9-11	The butcher misses the next game while he recovers.
12-14	The butcher misses the next games for recovery. Make a toughness test. If failed the butcher gets -1T permanently.
15-16	The butcher misses the next two games while recovering. Make a toughness test. If failed the butcher gets an 'old battle wound' injury automatically. If he already once received it from an unlucky indigestion table roll, then he gets -1T permanently instead. Also note down on rooster that every D6 rolled on the table is at +1, which is cumulative!
17+	The Butcher dies.

Ingredients

Gastromancy Spells

1. Bloodgruel Ingredient: Disembodied Limb M:3 C:6
   The butcher is restored to full wounds. Miscast: The butcher receives a S4 hit. No saves.
   
2. Braingobbler Ingredient: Severed Head M:3 C:7 An enemy model within 12" must pass a psychology test or flee 2D6" directly away from the butcher. Miscast: The butcher suffers from stupidity for the rest of the battle.
   
3. Bullgorger Ingredient: Bulls Heart M:4 C:6 Any one model within 8" and line of sight of the butcher receives a +1S bonus. At the beginning of your turn roll a D6. On a roll of 1 the spell ceases to apply. Miscast: The butcher suffers from Furious Frenzy special skill for this battle only.
   
4. Bonecrusher Ingredient: Dry Bones M:4 C:7 Any one model within 12" and line of sight receives D6 S2 hits with no saves allowed. Miscast: The Butcher loses one wound. No saves.
   
5. Toothcracker: Ingredient: Bedrocks M:5 C:7 Any one model within 8" and line of sight of the butcher receives a +1T bonus. At the beginning of your turn roll a D6. On a roll of 1 or 2 the spell ceases to apply. Miscast: The butcher receives a S6 hit. No saves.
   
6. Trollguts Ingredient: Troll guts M:5 C:8 Maybe cast at any one model within 6". Target gets immunity to all spells and regenerates! This allows you to ignore a wound taken on a roll of 4+. You cannot combine this with the step aside skill, just take one 'ward' save - the higher. The butcher receives automatically a S4 hit. No saves. At the beginning of your turn roll a D6. On a roll of 1 or 2 the spell ceases to apply. Miscast: Not good! The butcher receives D3 S5 hits. No saves.
   
7. Maws blessing Ingredient: Wyrdstone M:auto C:auto Any model within 8" of the butcher is blessed with divine energy. It gains +1S +1T, Frenzy and causes fear, for that battle only. This spell can only be cancelled when the model gets Knocked Down, Stunned or Out Of Action. Even the death of the butcher doesn't stop it - such is the power of the blessing. Add the beginning of your turn when the spell is in play the affected model must take a Toughness test. If failed the model goes automatically Out Of Action. The model misses the next game while recovering but does not roll on the serious injury table. The butcher will still need to consult the Indigestion table though. If passed the model receives an automatic S4 hit only. Miscast: Nothing, just add the D6 to the Indigestion pile.

Warband Development Progression

Designer Notes

• Don't Fight with Knives: That is something I made to prevent players from using a cheap second weapon. I also imagined it as comical seeing an ogre fight with something as small as that, when he has a far bigger biceps. On the contrary the ogres got a nice unarmed attack, which comes free and uses attack value. But this rule can go, it isn’t that important.
• Gluttony: Ogres need to eat. They simply have to. And that's a drawback cause you need to buy that food. Combining with everything being expensive, the Ogres are likely to have problems with money. You will have to spend it wisely, and keep some for a moment of dire need. That's another way to make them less powerful, a serious one IMHO! An important element in this case is the butcher as he allows you to store some extra rations.
• Starting Stats: An ogre is an Ogre and letting him have lesser stats wouldn't make him an ogre anymore. So I WON'T lower the starting stats for them, seeking the balance in another way is the way to go. An option is to give them only about 450 gc for the start.
• All to Easy: That's my version of the slow-witted rule ogres in Mordheim have. It had to be in some way, but so it wouldn't slow down the advances considerably. It should work fine...
• Gnoblars: As you need some of them (like the Wyrdstone Gnoblar) to stay alive, I gave them this rule, so you can hide them in a safe spot. They still must be on the table so a sneaky enemy can try to assassinate them to gain easy experience points, but that's how it should be I guess. You need to protect them! Always have an ogre around them!
• Not Really a Threat: that rule should make Gnoblars a bit value in supporting ogres in combat, but not much in general.

The Balance Issue

Cheers, Azmodan