Unlike other Warhammer armies, the Dogs of War do not come from a particular place, nor do they comprise a particular race, although men do feature very strongly amongst their number. They are bands of warriors who live by fighting - fighting for pay, fighting for adventure and, most importantly of all, fighting for the chance to win fabulous wealth. Some are merely bandits, pirates and cut-throats of the most untrustworthy kind, but others are gallant Princes and buccaneers who lead bold warriors to adventure and conquest in far away lands.

As already explained, not all mercenaries are human, although many are. Amongst the Dogs of War, freebooters from the frozen wastes of Norsca rub shoulders with Corsairs from Araby and mysterious warrior monks from the east. Mercenaries commonly form into itinerant bands under the leadership of a charismatic or especially brutal leader. The most famous of these bands are, more often than not, known by the name of their leader, such as Hagar Whitefang's Were-Marauders, Khalag's Sure Shots, and the renowned Golgfag's Ogres. An entire army of Dogs of War is made up of many of these bands under the overall leadership of a roguish mercenary general.

Mercenary armies of Dogs of War fight all over the world. They are drawn to places where fortunes can be won by ruthless adventurers. The treasure-houses of the Lizardmen in Lustria are a major prize and have attracted many a would-be conqueror, such as the crazed Piaza Pizzaro and the near-legendary Sven Hasselfriesian. Further east the mysterious Dragon Isles and the shadowy lands of Cathay have tempted soldiers of fortune such as Count Egmund Baernhof and the infamous Thorson Grint. South to the Southlands and the legendary treasures of Karak Zorn, eastwards to Cathay, and west to the treasure-houses of Lustria, the world is truly awash with ragtag armies of sell-swords who nurture wishful dreams of empire!

The Bearmen of Urslo fight in the employ of Chaos Warriors.

Although Dogs of War ply their bloody trade to every point of the compass, the most notorious breeding-ground of mercenaries is the land of Tilea in the Old World. From all the kingdoms of the Old World and many lands beyond, sell-swords come to Tilea where they can be assured of ready and profitable employment. The reasons for this are quite obvious. Tilea is an anarchic and largely ungovernable country, where self-serving individuals rule precariously over proudly independent cities. The real power lies with wealthy Merchant Princes who plot and scheme against the tax-gathering authorities and each other with almost equal enthusiasm. Indeed, such is the tradition in Tilea that all armies of any size are mercenary armies - paid for and deployed by a wealthy Prince, a devious merchant or some ambitious tyrant.

Tilea is also a melting-pot to which all kinds of mercenaries come with the notion of joining whatever overseas adventure is flavour of the month. Such ventures are sometimes funded by wealthy merchants keen to open up new trade routes east and south, but often the whole thing is down to some crazed adventurer with a theory that the world is round, cubed, the shape of a very tall floppy hat, or some other such nonsense. No matter what the motivation, bold armies of Dogs of War depart every few weeks from the ports of Tilea and sail off into the sunset. On the whole they are never heard of again, but just occasionally a ship sails back stuffed to the gunnels with treasure, bearing a few jewel-encrusted survivors back to a new life of ease and luxury.

Related Links:
Dogs of War Miniatures Showcase | Dogs of War Army Lists