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Thus, did Bugman's Beer Cart make its way past Warg infested forests and Troll haunted hills. Until the day came, when at last on a warm summer afternoon, the Cart and its defenders entered the legendary gates of Moria to the cheer of thirsty dwarves! Hello readers! In this post, we have partying dwarves from Citadel, Bob Olley, Stone Haven. Also, King Kazador and his personal House Guard. Lastly, we focus on some fluff with the 6 major leaders of the dwarves that currently inhabit my Moria Reclamation Project.
Unloading the Beer Cart for the party. Or is it "refilling our empty kegs from the Beer Cart?" There must be some enchantment or Rune of Holding on that Cart Keg. That must be it! The Cart Keg has magical properties that allows beer to enter a pocket dimension that is larger than it seems from the outside. That Bugman is a smart fellow, instead of sending out a hundred barrel wagons, he sends one magical one. Ok, in the pic above, on the far left we have a fur hat wearing dwarf from Armorcast's Bob Olley Dwarf World, which I must warn anyone buying… is a large sized line of dwarves. I actually cut off his feet to make him fit in with the rest of my stunties. Next to him is a bald dwarf Brewmaster from Stonehaven Minis. Then a drunk dwarf from Citadel and beside him, a keg carrying dwarf who is actually a cannon crew loader (or perhaps an organ gun). At any rate he has now been requisitioned for beer duty instead.
Ah, the Dwarf Barmaid is bringing drinks around. Someone yells "Mhinz Abeir", and everyone else yells "Zyor Rond". The barmaid is another large Armorcast dwarf who has had foot surgery to mix in nicely with everyone else. I believe the fellow flagging her down for a drink is another artillery crew member, perhaps the Marauder siege gun?
Ahh, look its the woodcutter, the engineer, the young Blacksmith-tress, a happy cheering dwarf, stuntie on stilts (handy for when a dwarf needs that jar on the top cupboard), and the rat-catcher (another very important dwarf to be in Moria, wouldnt want the colony to be knee deep in vermin, would we?) The lady blacksmith is from Stonehaven, woodcutter from Armorcast, the rest are Citadel.
Cheery dwarf: "Barmaid, service please!"
The dwarves lead the Cart deeper into the Mines towards the "safe zone" where the bulk of the colony reside.
All this time, the party-goers have been protected by the watchful eye of the Gold-Shields…
King Kazador and his House Guard! I have modified him to carry a shield and done away with his horn. I think he looks far more business now. Definitely ready to start hammering some greenskins!
While the dwarves have their party below, above them on a ledge, it actually is time for business… a gathering of the clan elders! From left to right: King Kazador, Gimli, Prince Ulther, Prince Helfast, Chief Ratnik, and Baron Hawk.
King Kazador outranks the others and is declared the leader of the Moria colony. The dwarves still only hold the smallest portion (2 levels out of hundreds) in Khazad-Dum, and are still in danger if ever a serious attack is made upon them. Yet, Gimli asks that he be sent to explore the lower depths of Moria to search for his cousin Balin (the Lord Of Moria). Kazador agrees, but only a small portion of warriors can be deployed for such a mission, at this time. Baron Hawk of Clan Reaper stands up and volunteers to accompany Gimli's force into the deeper levels. So be it, says King Kazador, Gimli and Baron Hawk will take their troops (a sixth of the total dwarves) and lead a recon in force to ascertain if Balin yet lives. In the meantime, Kazador, Ulther, Helfast and Ratnik will continue to build up and fortify the defenses around the Eastern Gate, while waiting for more dwarves to arrive.
Baron Hawk tells his second in command, Captain Drogo about their mission. Let their men enjoy one more night of festivities, but on the morrow… onwards to danger and glory!
So there you have it! A party, some planning, and a hint of dangers looming in the near future.
Until next post… Zyor Round!
Cheers,
Mar
