If you're like me, you're wishing you still had your old camera.... But I'm still working on my Orcen Horde. This article is a follow up to the original 'Playing With Plastic Orcs' and shows some more of my conversions. I'm trying to show how EASY it is to add variety to your hordes, because easy it is! Please refer to the original article for basic techniques. As always, the basic figure is FP02. (shown at left) When purchased in bags of 50 they are cheap as dirt, yet they are nice, detailed figures with a lot of potential. I chose FP02 because his limbs are away from his body, and therefore easy to move. There are two other Orc figures in the range, and they are fine figures in their own right. I recently picked up a bunch of those to add variety, and because Orcs need archers! I wanted the leader to be a bit more assertive this time, so I straightened his arm and raised it above his head in a dramatic gesture. Rather than a scimitar, I gave him a khopesh, perhaps picked up from some Eastern foe.... His helmet is a crudely executed 'Dark Ages' style helmet, with spectacles, eyebrows, and a crest ridge. A tattered elf-cloak completes his gear. The musician took a lot of work, and I almost gave up. His arm was broken in several places, and pinned together after a lot of filing. His hand was pinned to his face, and a horn was built up on the wire pin. Drummers are easier. And I wonder how he blows a horn with those fangs in the way. I like the champion. He may not be screamingly fierce, but he carries a trophy as proof of his skill: A Dwarven axe. No surprise, the Orc spear shafts and Dwarf axe handles are similar in diameter. I used an axe head removed from a Dwarf leader, and attached it to the orc spear.

I picked up a 'D&D Miniatures Game' wolf, and added an Orc to it to act as a General for my little force. Plumes and a cloak give him a jaunty air, although his mount seems a bit casual. I'm looking for more of these wolves to make some cavalry, just to add some variety to the army. The next two figures are variations on a theme: If you look at the unit you can see more of them. Until now, the changes were all made by repositioning arms. With these figures, I scored the figures at the waist (around the bottom of the belt) and twisted them. This made the resulting figures a lot more dynamic, throwing blows forward, and blocking incoming blows aggressively. Varying the twist changes the figure significantly, and often the figure halves need not be separated in the process. I just twist, and run cyano adhesive in to fill the gap and fix the join. For all that, I've actually been rather conservative in my modifications, and I've barely scratched the surface of their potential. I'm also still working on my Dwarves, so the Orcs have someone to play with. The leader, right has wings attached to his helmet, and his axe has been replaced with a hammer. The unit has a banner based on a Viking Eagle design, printed on my computer, and attached to a wire banner staff.