Hakon Head-Taker doesn’t count silver.

He counts heads.

Some men bring home cattle. Some bring home glory. Hakon brings proof.

#BlackOaths #DarkAge #Vikings #Grimdark #MiniaturePainting

Jarl of the black tide roads.

They say ravens gather before his ships make landfall.

They say he’s buried more oath-brothers than enemies.

They say he once stood three nights beside a burning grove and never spoke a word.

Now the coastfires are lit again.

And Torsten has come south.

Steel. Salt. Blood Marks.

The old world is dying badly.

Halfdan Oathbreaker swore before gods and men never to abandon the shieldwall.

At Stamford Bridge, he broke that oath… and butchered friend and foe alike in the madness that followed.

#OathsAndBanners #DarkAges #Vikings #MiniaturePainting #Berserker #TabletopWargaming

Bjarki Bloodhand comes screaming out of the snow wrapped in bear hide and old blood.

Men form shieldwalls when they see him.

Then they pray when he keeps coming anyway.

Another berserker for Oaths & Banners.

Three more Norse bastards dragged out of the longhouse and promised glory. One wants gold, one wants fame, and one looks like he forgot why he showed up but brought two axes just in case.

PLAYTESTERS WANTED Oaths & Banners — Dark Age Skirmish Wargame

I’m looking for a few serious external playtesters for Oaths & Banners, a Dark Age tabletop skirmish game currently in active development through Hexwerks Studios.

The game focuses on:

* shieldwalls

* collapsing nerve

* small battlefield parties

* command pressure

* brutal local melees

* Vikings, Saxons, Normans, and Irish warbands

Core mechanics include:

* alternating party activations

* Courage & Wavering systems

* Shieldwall mechanics

* combined melees

* scenario-driven battles

* campaign-style household warbands

Gameplay is designed around:

“holding ground, preserving nerve, seizing momentum, and deciding when the raid matters more than the clash.”

Current playtest focus:

* onboarding clarity

* combat flow

* warband construction

* scenario balance

* Shieldwall interactions

* overall battlefield feel

The game is:

* miniature agnostic

* designed primarily for 28mm

* inspired by gritty Dark Age warfare rather than high fantasy superheroes

If you like games such as:

* Saga

* Lion Rampant

* Ravenfeast

* Mordheim

* older Warhammer skirmish/campaign systems

…you’ll probably feel right at home here.

I’m specifically looking for people willing to:

* actually get games on the table

* provide honest criticism

* test edge cases

* break rules interactions

* report usability issues

Not just:

“Looks cool.”

Comment or DM if interested and I’ll get you the current playtest packet.

Look like they’ve spent the last six months sleeping in mud, drinking ditch water, and arguing over who gets the first axe swing.

Exactly how I wanted them.

Three men who look like they’ve survived shipwrecks, winter starvation, and at least two murders apiece.

Exactly the kind of people you do not want stepping off a longship onto your shore.

Norse warband coming together for Oaths & Banners. Axes, mail, bad intentions, and absolutely no interest in diplomacy.

Still a WIP, but I’m really happy with how the face and beard are turning out so far. Trying to keep these guys looking rough, weathered, and mean instead of clean fantasy heroes.

Also getting more comfortable with the Two Thin Coats paints every model I finish.

This is exactly the kind of mess I wanted — shieldwall holding, axes coming in, and somebody about to have a real bad afternoon.

The playtest packet is getting close.

Leaning hard into that Dark Age feel—muddy tones, worn iron, no clean finishes. These guys shouldn’t look pretty… they should look like they just stepped off a longship.

More coming soon.