Army of the Heidecker League
(Empire - Averland)
- Captain Albert "One Stone" Spritzer
- Captain of the Empire
- + Full Plate Armour, Shield
- State Troops: Agbarad's Blades
- 20 swordsmen with full command
- Detachment: 10 handgunners
- Detachment: 10 handgunners
- State Troops: Bernlock Blues
- 18 Spearmen with full command
- + shields
- Detachment: 8 halberdiers
- State Troops: Heideck Gold and Greens
- 20 Spearmen with full command
- + shields
- Detachment: 10 handgunners
- Knights of the White Eagle
- 8 Knights with full command
- Knights of the Villa
- 5 Knights with Musician
- von Pottsdam's Pistoliers
- 5 Pistoliers with Outrider (repeating pistol) and musician
- Bergjaeger
- 10 Archers
- Great Cannon
- Great Cannon
- 1,500 points
For Averland! For the League! For the Countess!
The region of Averland is defined by the river Aver in the North and the Upper Reik in the south. Averland is one of the richest provinces in The Empire, though it is neither the largest nor the most influential, and its army is famous for its ostentatious uniforms. Its wide, open plains are perfect for growing crops and Averland Horses are valued highly in the nobility of the The Empire, but the most important feature of the province is the Blackfire Pass. The pass - a deep, volcanic cleft in the rock - is the only reliable route across the mountains. The Old Dwarf Road runs through the pass, connecting the Dwarf holds of the World's Edge Mountains and the lands of the Border Princes to The Empire; trade goods, especially the valuable metal ores from the Dwarfs, flow constantly into Averheim, from where they are transported by river into Nuln. It is this trade that grants Averland its wealth, but it comes with a heavy price. The pass is perpetually attacked, mostly by orc and goblin tribes, and keeping the way safe for trade is a difficult task. Guardianship of the pass falls to the Mountainguard, the elite of Averland’s forces. The dangers of the pass were made all too clear by a massive Orc invasion that occurred quite recently. The Elector Count Marius Leitdorf was slain by the Orc general, Vorgaz Ironjaw (later dispatched by the Emperor himself), but Leitdorf's holding action bought time for Karl Franz to rally the troops and defeat the horde. Thus far, no successor has been named.
The pass has been the gateway to the Empire for many other greenskin invasions, most notably those of Grom the Paunch of Misty Mountain (2410) and Gorbad Ironclaw (1707). The pass was also the site of Sigmar's legendary defeat of the Orc and Goblin tribes, and remains a place of pilgrimage for the faithful and the fanatical.
The Bergjaeger are a special detachment of the Mountainguard, comprised of trappers, hunters and other rangers. They are excellent archers and master trap-setters who know the pass like no other. Halflings serve both in the state army and in the Mountainguard - they have been part of the later ever since Gorbad Ironclaw's devastation of The Moot, the Halfling homeland.
Agbarad, accompanied by his unit's unusual standard bearer and one of the Blades
This army is based in Heideck and guards the junction of the Old Dwarf and Agbeiten roads. Its most colourful unit are Agbarad's Blades, a unit of swordmen who were the only survivors of an ill fated excursion to Mordheim. While they survived physically, a simple glance at their banner makes clear that the Blades were certainly not unscathed by the experience. Agbarad himself - who, prior to the expedition, had been Sergeant Markus Driebstiffner - is now a squat, twisted individual yet both his skill with his sword and his men's unswerving loyalty are without question. Agbarad's Blades are always supported by two detachments of the Countess's most skilled handgunners.
The Blades are supported by units of local spearmen, small units from local Knightly orders and heavier support comes from any war machines which can be co-opted, subject to each general's personal preferences.
Countess Magda Leitdorf leads the Heidecker League and she rotates command of the army according to her mood swings. The late General Adolphus Knackerbrecker, Arch Lector Lucas Plauen, Wizard Lord Arnest Helembertus and Grandmaster Diehl von Ritterbach have all led the army in recent months, leading to a certain amount of confusion and a lack of coherent tactics amongst the rank and file.
If the omens decree - the Countess places much faith in astrology - she opens the gates of her small bestiary and the army can be led by a griffon-mounted general or a pegasus-mounted Captain. All that can be said with any certainty is that there'll be halflings in there somewhere, whether as scouts or as a significant proportion of the rank and file (complete with catering corps) as the Countess is fond of the little scamps.
Outside the lands controlled by the League the army (and the league itself) are seen as a bit of a joke among other nobles of the province. Its central location mean that the league faces few threats and it is because of this that the league has been asked to represent Averland in the Emperor's recently announced series of wargames near Altdorf.