February is going to be a busy month for fans of Minions and especially the Gatormen aspect of their faction in Hordes. With a host of new releases on the way from Privateer Press take a look at some of the previews here...

"An eccentric monster hunter from the swamp, the gatorman Longchops has earned a name for himself in the wilds of western Immoren. Constantly seeking larger and deadlier prey to pit himself against, Longchops carries a heavy rifle and a wide array of snares and traps, having adapted the techniques of humans in his search for the perfect prey."

Let's kick things off with some of the characters like Longchops here who has brought along his gun to hunt down his prey. It's like Crocodile Dundee turned on its head. Once again this pushes the angle on Hordes that it just seems to have a lot more fun with its characters compared to Warmachine.

Next, we turn our attention towards those who look after the spiritual aspect of the Gatormen with this Boil Master and his rather explosive looking Spirit Cauldron.

"The boil master is terrifying to look upon as he stirs his spirit cauldron, a large cast-iron pot full of a bubbling, sickly soup of melted fat, body parts, and blood. The boil master feeds this cauldron a steady supply of dead and dying meat in order to coax forth the feral spirits of decay and death, happily chopping up any who draw near lured by the fragrant smell of the stew."

There's a lot you could do with this model beyond the norm. For example, I think it would be neat to paint the Boil Master up with an almost albino look to his skin, marking him out as looking different to the others due to his link to the spirits. Then, you paint the fire coming from the spirit cauldron in a baleful blue rather than the bright orange and red you see here to make him seem all the more mysterious and dangerous.

Looking towards another of the Solos for the Minions we also have this Gatorman Husk.

"The disgusting and bloated bodies of gatorman husks are stuffed near to bursting with all manner of venomous insects, and each new generation adds to the swarm wriggling within to distend the body ever further. Bokors direct these undead carriers at their enemies, hoping that a bullet or blade will puncture the husk’s swollen flesh. Even a small rupture causes the husk to burst into a grotesque, stinging cloud of swamp flies and worse that sows panic and disease among the enemy’s ranks."

No-one said that the Gatormen were normal. The model is such a strange and warped idea with the creatures' body being stuffed with insects that will burst out at any given moment. It's kinda creepy!

Mini Minions

As well as the larger Gatormen they also have some more supporting figures to help bolster your force like these Croak Trappers.

"Adapting the hunting techniques they once used to secure food for their tribes, croak trappers wield nets and daggers to bring down a new sort of prey. Prowling through stream and river to surprise their quarry, trappers hurl their nets to ensnare a victim before descending on it with a flurry of dagger blows."

These folks seem like the kind of unit that would be great on the tabletop IF you knew how to use them properly. I love the design of them though and I think they'd be really good fun to paint with that nice clash of the vibrant green against their leather armour.

Next up we have the Void Leech...

"Crafted by a bokor from a bog trog that has displeased them, a void leech is a mindless servant to the gatormen, one covered in countless occult fetishes nailed through its flesh. A void leech creates a pocket of arcane static that enemy spells have difficulty piercing, and it can be forced to sacrifice its pitiful life force to unravel even potent lingering curses."

As sacrificial pawns of the Gatormen they don't have to be anything special. I would have liked to see them create some different sculpts through for the Void Leech. Sometimes it's not overly noticable that you get some dupes within packs but this is rather evident. Yes, they are throw away units, but it's always nice to see some variety.

Lastly, for the Minions, we have some more terrain-based features instead with their Bone Shrines which dot the outskirts of Gatormen territory.

"Bone shrines dotting the perimeter of gatorman territories serve as both places of worship and warnings against interlopers. Covered in votive candles and the skulls of dead offerings to the gods Kossk and Barnabas, the Lord of Blood, bone shrines are places of dark occult power."

Whilst obviously they have a use in the game, these kinds of pieces could also be used when you're looking to build yourself a feature board. Suddenly a standard wood or pond looks a lot more characterful if you have one of these placed on the tabletop around it.

A Skorne Lord

It's not all handbag and boot material coming your way in February however as there is also a new release for Skorne too with Lord Tyrant Hexeris.

"A master mortitheurge, Hexeris is unrivalled in the manipulations of life and death. He has lost the ability to empathize with the living and now sees them as machines with precisely analyzed thresholds for potential, injury, and pain. Those who speak to him leave feeling tainted, for his eyes pierce through to their immortal essence. Hexeris is skilled in battle and is strong enough to have been a Cataphract if his mind had not destined him for a darker path."

This is an updated sculpt for Hexeris which gives him an additional heroic edge and adds a tad more movement into the way the model has been sculpted. He certainly looks like an awesome character to include in your army.

What will you be picking up in February from Privateer Press?