Searching for goblin models as stand-ins for Chaos Dwarf Hobgoblins

As of you many of you may know, I've been slowly building up my Legion of Azgorh (Chaos Dwarf) army. As any "good" Chaos Dwarf general knows, you can't have an army without a healthy supply of lackeys to be used as cannon fodder. With that in mind, I'm in the search of suitable models to be used as Hobgoblins. I have no interest in trying to hunt down the original metal hobgoblins that were released decades ago (they are expensive, and I think I can find something nicer today anyways).

GW's Nightgoblins (Gloomspite Gitz) are the most obvious choice, but I'm curious if anyone knows of some other options that might be equally as good or better. I'm specifically looking for models on foot, as I already have a couple of wolf mounted models. Also, the models have to be 28mm heroic scale, so they fit with the rest of my army. Aside from that, I'm curious to see the various offerings available. I consult the wisdom of the forum. Any good models out there? From what manufacturer? Links?

I probably won't buy them right away, but I have to start looking at potential Christmas presents, especially if the models are being produced by companies that don't have nearly such a speedy turnaround time as GW.

Cheers, in advance.

 

Well, given you already have a couple of wolf-riding models, I imagine the best sort of Goblins to fit in with the rest of your army would be similar in style to the 'ordinary' GW Goblins that were executed when the Gloomspite Gitz release arrived:

True, the GW Night Goblins are arguably better in most ways given they are much newer models (those Goblins above I think first arrived in 5th-6th Edition-ish, while the current Night Goblins appeared in 7th Edition and of course the Gloomspite Gitz stuff is even newer still), but you're going to be using them as Hobgoblins, the wolf-riding goblins that patrol the eastern steppes in the style of the Mongols. These ordinary goblins came the closest to replicating that in plastic as some of the heads had fur-lined helmets and stuff that really fitted the Mongol/Hun aesthetic.

The closest thing to this currently available that I can think of off the top of my head is the Mantic Goblin range:
https://www.manticgames.com/games/kings-of-war/goblins/

They have a set of plastic gobbos with bows and upgrade kits to give them either spears or hand weapons and shields (buying just one of which is enough to outfit an entire plastic set's worth with the particular weapon option). They also have a deal that gives you £10 off if you want to get 40 of them (2 sets worth) at once to make a horde.

I know you're not a fan of Mantic, but these chaps are honestly the closest thing to the bog-standard Goblins I can think of, and they also capture some of the madcap nature of Goblins pretty well with their crazy expressions and stuff. Also their prices are especially affordable, which is probably just as well given that you're probably going to be making a couple of hordes of Hobgoblins at least.

If you're really not a fan of this aesthetic, Strutsagget over on EEFL used Middle Earth Hunter Orcs as the basis for his Hobgoblins:
https://eefl.freeforums.net/thread/1020/evil-angry-dwarfs-project?page=5

GW store page link: https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/Hunter-Orcs-2018
The main drawback with these is of course they are around heroic 25mm as all Middle Earth minis are, rather than heroic 28mm, but these of course benefit from better sculpting and are all plastic (while the Mantic goblin archer kit is plastic, the upgrade packs are metal).

In a similar vein to the Hunter Orcs Oathmark have released their own goblins, who again go more along the lines of the Middle Earth Orc aesthetic but have more of the Mongol aesthetic than the Hunter Orcs:

https://www.northstarfigures.com/prod.php?prod=11449

They also have plastic Wolf Riders in case you're in need of more cavalry:

https://www.northstarfigures.com/prod.php?prod=14646

Again these chaps are newer sculpts and are pretty affordable (£25 for 30 Goblins or 15 Wolf Riders).

Hope at least one of those takes your fancy

 

Thanks for the detailed response @Lord Agragax of Lunaxoatl . Those are definitely some good options to consider!!!

I was searching for these guys on the GW site a while back, I had no idea they were axed. Stylistically (although dated), they are more in line with the wolf mounted models I got...


It's a shame that GW doesn't have updated foot variants of these guys!

I don't typically like Mantic, but these guys are actually quite good! I'll definitely consider them as a potential candidate. Russian Alternative is also working on some Hobgoblin models as we speak, so I'm curious to see how they will compare.

Interesting options, but I think a more "cartoony" look and a heroic scale fits better alongside the Warhammer aesthetic.



Thanks again for all the great suggestions!!

 

This guy is pretty cool (for some unit variation)...

 

Another good resource:

https://www.the-ninth-age.com/commu...s/&s=c4c0c787dd91007eb8ecc53556f648b8565fb4b9

 

You’re most welcome! Glad I could be of help!

I loved seeing this Underworlds Warband come out, it was great to see that GW haven’t completely removed the bog-standard Goblins from AoS lore and I was hoping that GW would do an army release for these after this war and teased them, but no sign of that yet

Given that you’ll need more than 3 Wolf Riders to form a unit, it might be worth looking at the Mantic Goblin Fleabag Riders for the riders and GW Fenrisian Wolves for the mounts (the Mantic ones seem to be a hybrid of wolves and squigs that wouldn’t work well alongside the GW ones, but they can be used as Chaos Warhound proxies or something )

Yeah they decided to get rid of them along with the bog-standard Orcs and Trolls when the Gloomspite Gitz came out (probably because they couldn’t be copyrighted ), but it was nice to see new Wolf Riders as evidence they reneged slightly on that decision later on.

Even though GW don’t support my most absolute favourite games anymore (40K doesn’t count because it’s a different edition), I always like to read up on what they’re releasing and what they’re getting rid of so that I know what I can still get and what I can’t get.

Glad to hear you like them, these chaps certainly preserve the classic gobbo aesthetic and follow GW’s more cartoony and humorous interpretation of them.

I don’t know if Hobgoblins still have Sneaky Gits, which were their version of Nasty Skulkers as I understand, in the Legion of Azgorh list, but if they did this chap would be quite a good model for one of those.

 

I'm going to use them as Hobogoblin Khans, which is a hero choice in the Legion of Azgorh army with access to giant wolves. Chaos Dwarfs only have two forms of chaff... the Khan or the Hobgoblin Wolf Raiders, the latter of which are a Rare choice. The consensus seems to be that the Khans are slightly better tactically, plus I'm usually tight for rare points (due to Destroyers and Hellcannons) but always have some hero points left over.

Yeah, I picked them up around boxing day when GW had that free Total War: Warhammer 1 deal. If they came out with variants on foot, I would pick them up in an instant. I really like the aesthetic.

I only occasionally keep tabs on it. So every once and a while, I get blindsided and find that something has been removed.

In any event, they can be used to give a unit a bit of variation, either on their own or as part of a unit filler (which I am fond of).

The chap in the top right corner looks pretty good:

 

Have you considered Gnoblars? They're pretty cheap on Ebay.

 

Gnoblars are quite a bit weedier even than Goblins, with larger noses and ears, are a good deal less intelligent and have a profile more akin to a Skink than a Goblin. I do like Gnoblars as an idea for extra Gretchin models for 40k as the actual Gretchin set has very little poseability, but personally I’m sceptical as to whether they would be good as Goblin proxies.

However, it’s @NIGHTBRINGER’s choice at the end of the day, it’s his army

 

I was going to recommend the Oathmark goblins as well. I haven't bought any yet, but I did pick up the wolf rider box and have really enjoyed painting them. They seem high quality for the price and have all the basic options one needs.

 

I love Gnoblars and I actually own a few! They are great little models.

I plan to use a few of them as a unit filler for my Hobgoblin unit. It makes sense that weedy Hobgoblins would pick on and abuse the even weedier Gnoblars!

I agree, they are little bit too small to be used as direct proxies. I plan to sprinkle in a few alongside whatever Goblin a eventually plan to pick up.

I agree, they look like very nice models. However, I think they would fit in better with LOTR than they would in WFB. They aren't "heroic" scale, are they?

 

@NIGHTBRINGER Two places that you could check:

https://eoeorbis.com/search?type=product&q=goblin

http://www.gamezoneminiatures.com/tienda/en/orcs-and-goblins/203-goblins-lanceros.html

See what you think.

 

Some interesting options. Thank you!

 

So what is your gut feeling? Will we ever see them? Within a year or two or three?

 

Yeah, certainly Goblins of all descriptions in Orc camps pick on Snotlings (while funnily enough Orcs think they're cute and adopt them as pets), so I wouldn't be surprised if Hobgoblins did the same to Gnoblars.

Certainly I always had a feeling the Oathmark models were closer in size to Middle Earth models (which I'm pretty sure are more 25-28mm non-heroic), and this pic proves it:


On the left is a Middle Earth Moria Goblin and on the right is a Mordor Orc, with an Oathmark Goblin in the middle. The Oathmark Goblin certainly doesn't look out of place amongst GW Middle Earth models, which is great because the GW Middle Earth kits don't have nearly as much variety as other GW models, so the Oathmark models can bring some of that variety. Those Oathmark Goblins would make great extra Orcs, and the Dwarf Heavy Infantry would make great plastic Khazad Guard for my Khazad-Dum army (yes I have Middle Earth Dwarves too ):



GW Khazad Guard for comparison:

I was hoping that they would come out around this time alongside the Kurnothi as an Elf faction, but GW have shifted their focus to Lumineth and Sons of Behemat for Order and Destruction respectively. After that it'll probably be something for Death as they don't have many factions and after that it'll probably be Malerion Elves as GW seem so focused on Elves (even though they could have simply made the Dark Elf models the basis of Malerion Elves so that we don't have the dumb fluff of Empire and Dark Elves in the same faction), so if GW are considering making a full army for Wolf Gobbos it'll probably be next year at the very least, and I'm uncertain if they'll ever make a full army of them. I just think it's a waste making a single Underworlds warband and then doing nothing else with them, like the Spindle Drones in Blackstone Fortress could have been the beginnings of a great new 40K Xenos faction, but GW are great at buggering up opportunities for new army ideas if they're not Space Marine or Stormcast chapters

 

I didn't they kept them as pets... that is awesome!

That's a perfect comparison. Very nice model, but it wouldn't fit in very well in my Chaos Dwarf army.

I'm not sure if it is worth it then to hold out for them, since they may never arrive.

Stupid Space Marines and Stormcast!

 

Bring on The Old World please GW.

And hopefully they don't completely fluff it.

 

Hmm... Have you seen these?
https://gorgon-studios.myshopify.com/collections/fantasy

or these...
https://www.warmongerminiatures.com/collections/goblins

or - and I suspect this will catch your fancy the most, THESE:
https://www.thebattleforge.co.uk/hobgoblin-warriors-317-c.asp

I'm kind of sort of making a goblin/hobgoblin 9th age army, so I've been looking into hobgoblin/goblin wolf rider minis a LOT lately...

 

Given that they’re going to have all new stuff made by Forge World at their crazy prices, they’re already well on their way to fluffing it

 

Certainly that is the case in the 8th Edition book - Orcs adopt Snotlings as pets, which then give the Snotlings someone to run to whenever a Goblin picks on them which annoys the Goblin because he knows the Orc will beat him up if he ever dares pick on his favourite Snotling.

Greenskin lore in general is just hilarious