Have you ever watched one of the The Lord of the Rings™ or The Hobbit™ movies and wished that a battle had a different outcome? Do you think you might have commanded the forces better than the heroes and villains on-screen?
In the Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game, you can do just that. Using an army of finely detailed Citadel miniatures, you and your friends can compete for the fate of Middle-earth.
With the 20th anniversary of The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers™ just around the corner, and plenty of other Middle-earth buzz going on, there’s never been a better time to get into the game. There are lots of ways to do it too – whether you want to play the game casually or competitively, or simply collect and paint the models, this hobby has something for everyone!
Collect
The new series of
are an ideal starting point for new players and collectors, with each containing a great selection of models representing a different faction – Rohan, Minas Tirith, Mordor, and Isengard.
If the thought of a Battlehost box full of models sounds overwhelming, you can also pick up an individual model of your favourite character, or perhaps a kit depicting a famous scene from Tolkein’s stories, such as Riddles in the Dark from The Hobbit™, or the forming of The Fellowship of the Ring to create a one-off display piece.
Build
Whichever you choose, when you pick up your box of miniatures, the first thing you will notice is that – whether made of plastic, resin, or metal – some assembly is often required. Building your models is the first step in bringing your favourite heroes to life. When complete, give them a quick coat of spray paint to undercoat them and you’re ready for step two – painting!
Paint
Painting is at the heart of everything – everyone is encouraged to pick up a brush and get creative. You don’t need an art degree to enjoy this element of the Warhammer hobby, and our experts over at Citadel Colour have produced loads of easy to follow video guides, such as this one on painting the heroic miniature of Elrond, to take you through the process. It’s up to you if you stay true to the box art, or go wild and add your own flair to your models.
You can then proudly display your miniatures alongside your other memorabilia, or you can have them earn their keep on the tabletop!
Play
Playing the game is where you can really bring the setting of Middle-earth to life. The Rules Manual and expansions give you the Core Rules of the game, as well as narrative battles to play out – imagine if the goblins did claim Smaug’s hoard, or the Witch-king had prevailed at Pelennor Fields!
If you’ve already decided on which army to champion, you can get started straight away. Each Battlehost is supported by a free downloadable set of the Core Rules, as well as a scenario to play through. In the downloads section of the Warhammer Community site you can find the rules you’ll need and also four separate free Quickstart Booklet PDFs – one for each of the Battlehosts – which contain profiles for all the miniatures you get in the boxes.
Your local Warhammer store is the best place to get started, and the team of friendly staff will be happy to give you a free demonstration of the game, or even introduce you to other players who can take you under their wing and show you the ropes.
To get a taste of the hobby, you will soon be able to pick up and paint a free Warrior of Minas Tirith miniature from your nearest Warhammer Store. Click here to get your barcode to claim your model.
Win a Battlehost
Once you’ve had a taste, you can enter a competition to win one of the four Battlehosts, and all the materials you need to build and paint the miniatures within.
To enter, all you have to do is sign up to the Warhammer mailing list by the 10th of October 2022 – using this link. It’s as simple as that. Make sure you read up on the terms and conditions, which you can find here.
Check out this painting video to see just how easy it is to get your defender of the White City resplendent in shining armour in no time.
We can’t wait to see the results, so make sure to share them on social media using #PaintingWarhammer!
