After a small but successful campaign last year, France-based Minimorph Sculpts returns to Kickstarter with a new and whimsical set of anthropomorphic miniatures, the Shallow Marsh Wars!

Shallow Marsh Wars // Minimorph

Whereas their first campaign, the Squirrels of Deepwood Forest, focused on making a group of seven furry-tailed warriors a reality, the Shallow Marsh Wars more than doubles that, adding two beautifully hand-sculpted warbands to the collection.

The Barbarians of Shadow Marsh

The first group, the Barbarians of Shadow Marsh, contains a ragtag band of eight wild beasts, each of them a different species. They are led by the ferocious wild cat Bite Dealer and the rat shaman Mother Mandragor.

It’s difficult to decide on a favourite sculpt here, as each has so much character. As they are, you could perfectly use them as a warband of Wildbeasts in Burrows & Badgers. They also make for perfect additions to warbands themed around specific species. I can very much see Mother Mandragor leading a force of black rat raiders from the Ironstone Hills!

The Free Farms Mercenaries

Ready to take a stand against the savage swamp beasts are the Free Farms Mercenaries. Much more uniform in both style and species, they make for a good contrast with the other warband. Most members are farmyard birds, led by the heroic Captain Duckan.

Again, the sculpts are packed with character, but if I had to pick a personal favourite, it would be either Loony the Guard Dog or the Goosekenecht. Whereas the former captures the spirit of the loyal, unflappable brute, the latter has the sharp, intense gaze that so often frightens me when cycling past geese. In fact, I personally would paint it up as the fearsome Canada Goose.

Interestingly, each of the feathered bird species in this warband – duck, goose, rooster and nondescript chick – is missing from the Oathsworn range, making them a welcome addition!

Stretch goals

The campaign reached its funding goal in no time at all and, at the time of writing, has already reached two stretch goals. These stretch goals not only add extra miniatures, like a mouse scout and another chick soldier, but are accompanied by small pieces of flavour text, pulling you into the story and imagination that birthed these excellent minis.

Practicalities

The minis are cast using a high-quality resin, which means that they should survive an accidental drop. The scale of the miniatures is about 28/30 mm, although there is some variation depending on the beast in question. While sculpting them, David had Burrows & Badgers in mind, so they scale perfectly with Oathsworn's range. From my experience with the previous Kickstarter, I can say that the casts are absolutely superb, requiring little to no cleanup.

The Squirrels of Deepwood Forest // Minimorph

Talking about the previous campaign, you can also pick the squirrel warband as a reward. Those who backed the Deepwood campaign will notice that the Squirrel Assassin is also among them, which was sculpted after the campaign as a gift for returning backers.

Returning Backer Reward // Squirrel Assassin

Last time, fulfilment started within a month after the end of the Kickstarter campaign. As this campaign has more miniatures and is already attracting many more backers, I can imagine this taking a bit longer. Nevertheless, their track record is excellent.

So, do check out the Kickstarter, which contains much more information on each and every one of these fantastic sculpts!

Will you be adding these warriors from the animal kingdom to your collection?

(text by Lonkelo & Gerry)