Hod the Chief Trumpeter

After Horik the Lord Commander and Knutr the cranky old slayer it's time for the third one of the heroes I painted for my 'Hill Dwarfs' project - Hod the optimistic trumpeter! Just like with the previous ones, it's a middlehammer dwarf on a bright green base, a nostalgic trip to the times when I was just starting with Warhammer.

The model is officially named 'King Kazador', but seeing how I want to make my 'hold' an unimportant, backwater one, I decided to downplay his royal characteristics and reduced him to being just a thane with a fitting role - the main trumpeter of Karak Valldar. In comparison with the previous ones, this one looks the most classic - with a simple pose and weapon held high, so to do him proper justice, I tried painting him as colorful as my painting style allowed for - he was pretty simple in the end, but enjoyable nonetheless.

Now that those three are done, it's time for some troops - and war machines too! Still, seeing as this is a slow project in a particularly slow time in my life, it will take some waiting...

While subterranean dwarfs can rely on their strong lungs and good acoustics of their tunnels for communication, the hill dwarfs of Karak Valldar must use some help in that regard - that’s where trumpeters come into action. Using impressive horns, they sound elaborate calls that help their leaders command the troops on expansive, grassy hills. The current Chief Trumpeter in the hold is Hod, a relatively young Thane serving under Horik. What sets him apart from all his comrades in Karak Valldar, he is earnestly enthusiastic about his work here, immune to the grumbling attitudes of older dwarfs. Lacking resources, goblin raids, irritating inspections from their superiors, Hod can find something positive in all of that and more. Hill dwarves can laugh at his naivete, but secretly they admire his view on life and find some kind of comfort in it during all the hardships.