Mordheim 2019: Sisters of Sigmar games

Sound the dread alarm.

The smoke has finally settled after the chaos of Mordheim 2019. We recounted the games played with the Undead and Witch Hunter warbands earlier, and now it is finally time to talk about the exploits of the Sisters of Sigmar!

Game 1:

The contestants:

Warband 1: Adam Wier’s Sisters of Sigmar, led by Sister Josephine Muhenje. Ordained as a Matriarch within a month of comet-fall, Muhenje has spent the past twenty years quelling the flames of the dying city. She has gathered her most trusted and capable Sisters at her side, each a veteran of countless missions. They are joined by Marco Vittor, an emissary of the town of Kurzewield, a miniature that was built and painted by Nicholas Tregidgo (k0rdhal). Vittor searches for signs of whether the nameless horror of Kurzewield has extended its influence on Mordheim.

Warband 2: Erik Blomqvist’s Sister of Sigmar, led by Matriarch Jolenta Milatovic. Thought to be lost in the labyrinthine catacombs beneath Mordheim 10 years prior, Sister Milatovic’s Convent have clawed their way back from the bowels of the city. Cut off from the shrines of their Fortress Monastery for a decade, each sister has crafted a shrine of their own in the form of their shields, each painted with beautiful mosaics. The struggle to survive in the City of the Damned has only strengthened their resolve to enact Sigmar’s wraith on the enemies of the Empire.

The board:

The Great Bridge (msterrainlab).

Scenario: Defend the Find

On an extended patrol of Mordheim’s Great Bridge, Sister Josephine Muhenje and her war party find a cache of wyrdstone hastily stashed among the ruins of an inn. Undoubtedly, would-be prospectors would come to claim the cache within hours...

Violence hangs in the air. Sister Muhenje intones a prayer to Sigmar and readies her Convent. Sister Domina Antioch’s second sight has foretold an unlikely reunion.

Sisters Regina Chernyshova and Elena Dennerlein work with Marco Vittor to survey their surroundings and set up a makeshift defense.

The two Sisters of Sigmar war parties come within eyes view, both forces uncertain of the others’ loyalties.

Righteousness and devotion to Sigmar’s cause will be determined in battle.

The two warbands meet in combat, a cacophony of hammers and ritual prayer.

Severely outnumbered, Sister Muhenje calmly relays her orders, before joining her sisters in combat.

Matriarch Jolenta Milatovic joins the melee on the other flank, her group's superior numbers proving advantageous.

The purity and conviction of the newly-arrived Sisters resolve is evident in their sure hammer blows and the clarity of their prayers. Sister Muhenje lays her hammers down in peace. Sister Antioch’s vision has been fulfilled, and Sisters long separated are reunited.

Game 2:

The contestants:

Warband 1: Adam Wier’s Sisters of Sigmar, led by Sister Josephine Muhenje. Having directed Matriarch Jolenta Milatovic and her warband back to the Fortress Monastery Sigmar’s Rock, Sister Josephine Muhenje and her party continue their sacred duty of gathering wyrdstone to seal away from the Empire.

Warband 2: Alexander Winberg’s Sisters of Sigmar, led by Sister Superior Managarmr. Members of the Choir, each sister from this Convent is charged with holding vigil over the Unheld Hammer deep within the halls of their fortress monastery, the Rock. The conditions in Mordheim worsen with each passing day, forcing even the inner guard to patrol the ruins of the city. Mourning the recent death of their Matriarch, Sister Iarnvidia, the Choir marches forth into the city once more, intent on following her life’s devotion of ridding the streets of wyrdstone.

Warband 3: Johan Egerkrans’ Undead warband, led by the vampire Graf Sugismund Molossus, Knight of The Order of The Black Wing. At his side is the necromancer Macrotus the Soiled, and the swordsman Myotis the Blade, along with two dregs and a collection of wraiths. Graf Molossus’ followers continue to increase in number, as he continues to gorge on the wyrdstone recovered in the dismal city (and find a use for the cache of bows he pulled from a crumbling mausoleum just moments before).

Warband 4: Alexander Lunde’s Witch Hunters, led by Captain Guttorm the wrathmaker. Haunted by the untimely death of his parents, Guttorm stalks the streets of Mordheim enacting his vengeance on all the loathsome and foul creatures that inhabit it. The skulls of his parents rest on his shoulders as grim reminders of his task. With his brace of pistols in hand and a glint of hellfire in his eyes, Captain Guttorm leads his witch hunters to Mordheim’s Great Bridge. He will see to it that Mordheim burns and all the sinners perish under his heel.

The board: 

The Great Bridge (msterrainlab).

Scenario: Wyrdstone Hunt

With each passing year, the ground of Mordheim has become increasingly unstable. Temporal anomalies are now woven into the fabric of the land, making journeying into its depths a fool’s errand without a proper guide. Rumors suggest that the Great Bridge is not just a crossing over tepid water, but also an entry into the revolving corridors of Time, where wayward travelers can find themselves lost and set adrift.

Sister Muhenje and her fellow devotees venture into the blasted streets of Mordheim once more, the acrid stink of wyrdstone in the air.

Captain Guttorm and his Witch Hunters fan out, scouring the surrounding ruins for witches and other sinners.

Sister Managarmr and the Choir move cautiously through the derelict streets, weapons drawn and ready for blood.

Graf Molossus leads his followers to the Great Bridge in search of wyrdstone.

Captain Guttorm and his Witch Hunters glimpse the tell-tale signs of wyrdsone in the distance and quicken their pace.

The stench of decay and moldering bones fills the air. The Sisters of Sigmar cautiously advance through the streets, warhammers at the ready.

The Witch Hunters leave no stone unturned and soon discover a cache of wyrdstone in the rafters of a ruined building.

It is not long before the Witch Hunter’s search for wyrdstone is interrupted by the meddling of the blasphemous Sisters of Sigmar. The Witch Hunters ready their weapons, thanking Sigmar for this opportunity to rid Mordheim of the daemon-worshiping heretics.

Sister Muhenje and her fellow Sisters lock their eyes on the shambling and spectral undead. Violence is imminent.

The Sisters of Sigmar charge into battle against the force of the undead, blessed warhammers screaming in vicious arcs. The undead ready their blades in defiance and stand ready to meet the charge.

The Sisters of Sigmar and the Witch Hunters meet in combat and a bitter struggle ensues.

The Witch Hunters not engaged in combat continue their search for wyrdstone.

Graf Molossus orders his minions aside and singles out Sister Muhenje in combat, his thirst for blood undeniable.

The Choir, with faces unreadable behind featureless masks, turn to the raving zealotry of Captain Guttorm and his Witch Hunters.

Graf Molossus’ spectral hounds make short work of the Witch Hunter’s hunting dogs.

The streets slick with blood, Sister Muhenje’s healing prayers are no match against the onslaught of undead attacks.

At the height of the bloodshed between the Choir and Captain Guttorm’s Witch Hunters, something shifted. It was not heralded by any of the foretold signs, no peal from the heavens or blinding light, just a slowing of time, chants to Sigmar stuck on lips, weapons suspended in crimson arcs. As suddenly as it occurred, things reverted back to normal, but the Witch Hunters were gone. Of their whereabouts there was no sign, save the blood they spilled.

Sister Managarmr intercepts the blooded hounds, bringing her breaking wheel down on them with cold fury.

The conflict on the Great Bridge settles to an uneasy silence as Matriarch Josephine Muhenje strikes down Graf Sugismund Molossus, Knight of The Order of The Black Wing. The Graf’s beaten form scatters into a cloud of bats, echoing a curse in the wind against Sister Muhenje, a new hatred formed. Despite their apparent victory, the Sisters find the Bridge largely void of the wyrdstone that brought them there in the first place.

Game 3:

The contestants:

Warband 1: Adam Wier’s Sisters of Sigmar, led by Sister Josephine Muhenje. Having successfully driven Graf Molossus and his spectral minions from Mordheim’s Great Bridge, Sister Muhenje turns her attention to the next looming threat, whispers of the great horned rat.

As they leave the bridge, a chance encounter brings the Convent face to face to a wounded knight. Sister Muhenje’s healing prayers mend the knight's wounds and in gratitude the knight joins them. Ser Leonardo Berr, the Gilded Knight of Merkanos was created by Nicholas Tregidgo (k0rdhal).

Warband 2: Chris Lail’s (Necaros) Skaven warband, lead by Assassin Adept Grime Tooth. Years of preying on unwary adventurers within Mordheim have made Grime Tooth and his band extremely resourceful and deadly.

The board:

The Great Wall of Mordheim - Sleetheim (Koltti).

Scenario: Defend the Find

Increasing reports suggest that one of the southern gates leading into Mordheim has become a site of frequent ambushes by the loathsome ratmen that have infested the city. A dilapidated tower stands directly outside the city walls; the Sisters of Sigmar suspect that it is a makeshift outpost of Clan Eshin, and want to see it purged of their filth.

Grime Tooth and his adepts of Clan Eshin poison their blades, readying themselves to ambush any unsuspecting travelers that pass by their crumbling tower.

Matriarch Josephine Muhenje leads part of her warband out of the main gate with a direct path towards the crumbling tower, fully aware that a trap is likely lying in wait.

In her mind’s eye, Sister Domina Antioch can almost taste damp and matted fur of the loathsome rat creatures as she guides a second detachment towards the ruined tower. She is joined by Marco Vittor and Ser Leonardo Berr, the Gilded Knight of Merkanos

Impatient, some of Grime Tooth’s minions creep from the ruined tower, smelling the advancement of the man-things.

The Sisters continue towards the darkened tower, the sound of their advance dampened by the howling winds in the surrounding woods.

Within moments of reaching the outskirts of the tower, the Sisters are beset by the skaven forces. A bestial rat ogre leads the assault, its split face issuing a blood-curdling howl.

On the other flank, the skaven launch their attack with equal fury. Sister Constance Oni is prepared and raises her double-handed hammer in greetings. Leonardo Berr readies his great sword, as Marco Vittor is descended upon by a skittering ratman wielding a barbed prod. 

Assassin Grime Tooth joins the melee, baring his poisoned blades down on Sister Apollonia Alvarado. A member of the Rock’s inner Choir, Sister Alvarado  is well versed with poisons.

The skaven begin to fall to the combined onslaught of Sigmarite warhammer and knightly greatsword.

The mighty rat ogre succumbs to its wounds, shifting the melee in favor of the Sisters of Sigmar. Sensing their imminent defeat, Grime Tooth signals  a retreat and the remaining ratmen disappear into the shadows of the woods.

While victorious, it was a hollow victory. Nothing short of Sigmar’s own intervention would cleanse Mordheim of the skaven taint. Soon the skaven will return with even greater numbers…

After months of work and anticipation, I can finally say the Mordheim 2019 project is at a close. It was an incredible journey that concluded with a spectacular day of gaming with a plethora of hobbyists that I admire. Special thanks needs to go to Alex Winberg for organizing it. Thank you all for reading this post and for following my progress building the Sisters of Sigmar. This does not mark an end to the Sisters, however. I still have some final painting to do on a few of the models, and Mad Meg needs to be finished. I also have ideas for future Sisters and hope to use them in further games of Mordheim.

- Adam Wier