Beastlord and Beastlore

I managed to finish painting the GW Beastlord which I bought second-hand off ebay last evening.

This figure is a bit iconic - there are two versions of it currently being sold by GW: one swinging a two-handed axe, and this one which is supposed to be holding two axes. The previous owner obviously tried to do a conversion and had cut the axe on his left hand off, which meant it was sold as "incomplete" and I managed to get it at a bargain; in fact, I have planned to field him with a shield, so I actually saved a bit of effort there!

It's a rather busy figure, with all the studs and bits he is carrying, but the colours responded to my usual block-and-wash technique once more.

What is interesting to me is that both versions of the figure come with one of its horns broken - I don't know if there is some fluff associated with that, but it did get me to think about fluff for my beastmen.

The GW beastmen (and their derivatives) come with so many skulls or other human body parts sculpted on them it makes me wonder: why do they hate us so much? "Chaos" is a convenient excuse, but I sort of wanted a... a nobler beastman.

Then I came across the Gundestrup cauldron and subsequently Pashupati while browsing, and I came up with a mythology for my beastmen.

In their creation myth, the beastmen tell of a time when all animals (including men and I suppose the other humanoid races) came to Pashupati to be given their traits.

The carnivores were first and asked for padded paws so they could stalk their prey, and claws and teeth to take them down.

The herbivores were next and they asked for hooved feet so they could run from their predators, and horns with which they may use to defend themselves.

Then man came before Pashupati and said: Lord, you have given the best traits to the carnivores and the herbivores - how shall we strive against them?

So Pashupati in his kindness gave man the greatest traits: feet to walk on, and hands which he may use to craft tools, on the condition that he used them only to keep himself safe.

But man exploited his advantage and enslaved and killed the other animals, so they came back to Pushapati, saying: Lord, with the hands you have given man he has made weapons to hunt us down and chains to enslave us. He has slain us not just for food or in defence, but also for sport. Our claws and horns are no match against his iron, and our paws and hooves do not outrun his arrows and spears.

When Pashupati heard this he was wroth, and he turned his supplicants into beastmen, giving them the hooves of the herbivores so he might run swiftly, the teeth and claws of the carnivores that he might be fearsome in combat, and the hands of man so he may craft and use weapons, and he sent the beastmen forth with the sacred mission of punishing man for breaking their covenant with Pushapati.

And that, my children, is why we beastmen make war on man.