The Mystical Land of Araby, a guide to suitable models.

This post is a bit of a departure for me, as I really only use the blog to post up models I've painted and the associated scenery and fluff to go with it. 

However, after receiving an Araby wizard as a gift, (and finding some saracens in the leadpile I forgot I owned!) I recently decided to paint up a small Araby army.

Anyway, this is what I've got so far (as the Saracens are in the paint stripper at the moment):

It's not much, is it! Anyway, I've been searching out old models and new ranges that would suit such a force. Because it actually took quite a bit of work to find ranges of models that matched up with the old Citadel ranges, I thought I'd put up a guide to help anyone else who wanted to do the same, as well as a bit of background of Araby itself. 

All of that and more (lots, lots more. Believe me it's huge!), after the cut...

The Kingdom of Araby

Situated south of Tilea and beyond the Southern sea, the Kingdom of Araby is not so much a single kingdom, more a series of small coastal City States surrounding a huge desert hinterland:

Although the Sultan of All Araby claims rulership of the entire sub-continent, in reality he has very little control over the individual states, which are continually at war with each other. There are several main cities in Araby, as follows: 

• Copher - A huge trading centre renowned for its spices, also known as the home to the dreaded pirates of Copher.
• Al-Haikk - Known as the City of Thieves, this is the largest trading port in Araby. 
• El-Kalabad - Located on the coast of the Gulf of Medes, this is one of the most remote City States.
• Lashiek - Home to the Sultan of All Araby, this is the centre of the Arabyan slave trade.  
• Martek - A rare inland city, Martek is fabulously weathy thanks to it's mining industry.
• Sudenberg - Sudenberg is rare in that it is an Imperial colony, not an Arabyan city-state. Tolerated by the Sultan, it is an important centre that facilitates trade links between the Old World and Araby.

Bordering on the Land of the Dead as it does, Araby has suffered many devastating incursions of the undead over the millennia, leaving a large number of ruined cities in their wake. The most important of these was Bel-Aliad, formerly the centre of the Arabyan civilisation, now destroyed, abandoned and partially buried under sand. Antoch is another such ruin, however it was not an Arabyan city, but was founded by Bretonnians during their Crusades against Araby a millennia ago. 

Arabyan Military Forces

As far as my Araby army's composition goes, I'd originally envisioned it as merely a small warband to guard an Arabyan merchant in Altheim. However, as these things do, the idea has ballooned in my mind to eventually build a 3000 point army for use in WFB3.

To work out what unit types an army would consist of, I've gone with two main sources, there's a fan made Araby army sourcebook for 8th Edition WFB (written/compiled by Mathias Eliasson), and the Warmaster army list that GW Specialist Games produced, the last real large piece of Araby background that GW released (to my knowledge):

The Warmaster army list consists of the following unit types:

• Characters - The commander of an Arabian army is likely to be a Grand Vizier - perhaps the Grand Vizier of the Great Sultan himself. Few Sultans would be so bold as to take to the field personally but throughout history there have been notable exceptions such as the mighty Sultan Jaffar who led a powerful army into Estalia and besieged the Tilean city of Tobaro. Subordinate to the overall commander are marshals and commanders of lesser rank within the palace hierarchy, noble Emirs, and Sheiks from the desert. Not least in status are the great sorcerers of Araby - mystics of the southern deserts and court magicians of the Sultans themselves. They might ride flying carpets - aerial spirits bound into the spiralling patterns of carpets. Their ability to bind desert daemons to their will enables Arabian wizards to command Djinns to carry them from place to place. Military leaders often ride upon Elephants as befits their exalted rank.

• Spearmen - Arabian armies are based upon regiments of infantry. They garrison the cities and towns and enforce law and order throughout Araby as well as forming its standing army. The majority of these warriors carry tall spears and shields and fight in well disciplined ranks. Amongst these troops are some distinctive regiments which, traditionally, fight with curved swords or which wear uniforms peculiar to their place of origin. 

• Bowmen - The men of Araby place great faith in the bow and all the cities of Araby maintain strong bodies of archers. Although firearms are known in Araby they are nowhere near as common or as advanced as those used in the Old World and are rarely issued to common troops.

• Guard - The household troops of the rulers of Araby are famously loyal and lavishly equipped - they carry weapons of the finest quality and wear brightly coloured clothes of silk brocade. Each Sultan, Caliph and many lesser nobles and sorcerers have their own core of guards. So loyal are they that they would die at their own hands if their master so commanded. Similarly dedicated are bodies drawn from some of the outlandish communities of the south including the Dread Daughters of Tariq from the Land of Assassins and the Silent Guard of Eunuch Mountain.
  

• Knights -  Horses are highly prized in Araby amongst both the sultans of the coast and the sheiks of the inland deserts. The Arabians are rightfully proud of their cavalry. They are ornately equipped with long lances, tall helms, and glittering armour.

• Desert Riders -  The deep deserts of Araby are home to fierce nomads whose swift riders are the best light cavalry in all the land. The cities of the coast also maintain bodies of light cavalry for scouting and patrols - but all agree the riders of the desert of the finest and most dashing.
  
  
• Camel Riders - The camel is a work-a-day creature in the land of Araby where it is common to see long trains marching from the deserts into the markets and bazaars of the coastal towns. Camel caravans carry all kinds of exotic spices, cloth, and foodstuffs from the eastern valleys of the Atalan mountains and beyond. It is only the fierce warriors of the desert tribes that ride these intractable creatures into battle. Camel riders are brave and notoriously savage warriors who navigate their way across the shifting sands of Araby by an uncanny instinct unfathomable and mysterious to mere city dwellers. They are guided as much by their knowledge of the deep desert as by their desert-born mounts and, some would say, by their taste for blood! 

• Magic Carpet Riders -  The sorcerers of Araby have perfected the art of binding aerial spirits into physical forms - not least of which is the famous flying carpet. Carpets carry two or sometimes three riders, who arm themselves with bows as well as various missiles. These are thrown into the enemy's ranks and include such unpleasant surprises as pots of scorpions, serpents, fire-ants, hornets and venomous spiders.

• War Elephants - Elephants are an exotic creature even in Araby for they come from the lush bushlands that lie between Araby and the jungles of the Southlands. The Sultans like to collect all kinds of wild and monstrous beasts, and they eagerly compete against each other when it comes to maintaining the largest and most impressive herd of Elephants. These are ferocious and dangerous creatures, all the more so because each carries a wooden tower upon its back, within which ride Arabian warriors armed with long spears and assorted missiles that they hurl at their enemies below.

• Djinn - These spirits are worshipped by the superstitious people of Araby. It is commonly believed that the spirits must be appeased with prayers and small tokens of respect such as gifts of food and drink. These so-called elemental creatures are all daemons of a kind, but so far removed and isolated from the source of magical power in the north that they rely upon the close presence of powerful magical artefacts to maintain their existence. They also sometimes cling to local areas where a vestige source of magical energy may be found, but in such cases their power is not usually great. Much Arabian magic is based upon creating and using forms of magical containment such as cages, boxes, or crystals, which are used to capture and enslave these Daemons.

Mathias' list also contains the following extra unit types: 

• Hashishin - The Hashishin are a semi-religious sect of assassins dedicated to stealth, and murder, thought to have originated somewhere in the mountains of west Araby. The Hashishin are well-known in Araby, especially among the Sheikhs and Caliphs, whom fear them greatly, for who knows what political opponent might have hired one of these dreaded assassins to rid of him?

• Corsairs - Corsairs are warriors born to the sea, unencumbered by bulky armour, accustomed to swift moves and running battles over open water. While the early Arabyan peoples were born to the desert, they soon became practiced in the ways of the sea, and dominated trade and piracy in the waters surrounding their kingdom.

• Slave Guards - Slave Guards are slaves taken capture by Corsairs and prisoners of war. They are then given some training and formed into standing military units. They are lightly armed with short spears, shields, and lacking armour. While useful at defending flanks and dealing with light cavalry, these troops won't hold up in a prolonged melee. They are led by a Slavemaster, whose brute strength and their powers of manipulation to break the spirits of their possessions. The presence of a Slavemaster will instil a great deal of fear and discipline into the ranks of the slaves they watch over.

• Janissaries -  The Janissaries, meaning 'new soldier', are an elite slave regiment in the Araby army. Drafted while young, these soldiers form a specialised part of the Araby army and pledge loyalty to the Sultan. Unlike other troops in Araby, Janissaries are not Arabyans. Instead, they are taken as children from other countries such as Bretonnia, the Empire or Tilea, often on raids by the Corsairs.

• Nomad Hunters - Nomad Hunters are guerrilla fighters used to living in the harsh conditions of the desert, who acts as scouts and ambushers in the Araby army. These fighters are brought up outside the standard Arabyan tribes and military training. They are separated from their families at a young age by soldiers under the command of the Caliphs and Sultans and brought to special monastery barracks in the Atalan Mountains. Here they spend a lifetime in prayer, solitude and learning to fight. They are particularly skilled as snipers in the sand dunes of the desert, and are usually sent out as scouts before the battle where they hide in favourable positions, ready to ambush unsuspecting foes.

• Dervishes - The Dervish warrior tribe is known throughout Araby for the exceptional skill their warriors show in battle. Despite the fact that they make no use of blackpowder weaponry, they are experts at sowing death through the ranks of the enemy forces. 
  Dervishes are an unstoppable force on the battlefield, spinning through enemy ranks before they even have the chance to strike, slicing up anyone in the path. They are fierce religious fighters who enter a state of controlled violence when they enter battle. 

• Blade Dancers - The Bladedancers are the bastard daughters of the Sultans‘ harem, taken from their mother after birth and trained to be skilled swordfighters. Most of the girls will not survive the training, and only the strongest will become a full graduate.  

• Naffatun -  Naphtha is a mixture of chemicals that become a fiery liquid that is difficult to put out. Naffatun are specialised troops that throw deadly ceramic pots of flaming Naphtha that burst into flames on impact spilling a sticky molten mess that can seep through any armour.

• Basilica Cannon - The largest of the Arabyan artillery pieces are known as Basilica Cannons, with the first one ever constructed being almost 30 feet in length and able to fire missiles weighing up to 300 pounds. It was horribly inaccurate, but when it hit, it caused massive damage to whatever stood in its way. 

• Sandglass of Time - These Sandglasses are very potent artefacts with the ability to harness the power of time. The sand in these glasses never run out, and the whole construct radiates a magical glow. Sandglasses of Time appear every now and then in Araby‘s armies, always accompanied by the brotherhood that controls them. These magnificent crystal hourglass possess the power to freeze time, rewind it, and even cause creatures to age years in mere minutes until they wither into dust.

• Rocs -  Rocs are terrifying, legendary birds renowned for their ability to carry off elephants and other big animals. While their beaks are hooked like an eagle‘s and designed for slashing and tearing, most rocs prefer to seize prey in their massive, clawed talons and drop them from great heights before feasting on the shattered remains. 

Added to these, I'd like to add a few more unit types including Slingers, Animal Handlers, Giants, Ogres, Jezzail gunners, and um, maybe some halflings, but more about that later. ;)

As far as points values go for 3rd Edition WFB, I've not even thought about that yet, but I'll probably have a think about that once I've worked out what models I'll be using, as PV's are of secondary importance to me. It's not like this army will ever see use as anything other than a display piece, in all likelyhood! At the best, it'll get used in narrative battles where points are less than critical. 

Araby Model Ranges

So, on to the suitable models, by range. Rather than just build a medieval Arab army, add a 'Y' on the end and call it done, I've been looking specifically for models that suit both the Araby fluff and the old Citadel sculpting style. Basically, this means they need to be quite chunky, a bit caricatured, and in my own highly subjective opinion, "not be crap". 

That unfortunately rules out most of the (relatively) cheap multipose plastic ranges by companies such as Gripping Beast and Perry Miniatures. Not because they're crap, far from it, but because they have more realistic proportions and tend to look very small and spindly compared to older Citadel models. 

I've also avoided listing the odd 'Araby' styled figure in a general range unless it's suitable as a character, meaning that to be included in the list, models need to have a selection of poses for each unit type, as I'm generally opposed to monopose units. 

(OOP) Citadel Ranges

Over the years GW have put out a number of assorted Araby models. This is by no means an exhaustive list as there are many hidden in other ranges, just the ones I've thought of so far.

RR6 Mad Mullah Aklan'd's Death Commandos

(Photo from SoLegends, beautifully painted by Finlay Light)

The downside on these is that as they're long OOP and as such quite expensive these days, but they're nice models, and I'd love some eventually. 

Eternal Champion Pang Tangian Warriors

Another long OOP (and therefore not cheap) range, these aren't particularly traditionally 'Arabic' looking in style, more pseudo-Persian at a guess, but a: I've got a bunch of them in the leadpile, and b: they're suitably 'other' compared to Old World ranges that I plan to use them as either a unit of elite Caliphate Palace Guards or Dervishes.

I've also got one of the handlers and some tigers in the leadpile: 

As Arabyan rulers are known to keep wild animals as pets in their menageries, I think these guys would work well as a special unit in the army. 

Dogs of War

As part of their Dogs of War range there were two Araby themed special units, Al Muktar's Desert Dogs, and Mydas the Mean. 

Al Muktar's Desert Dogs were a particularly nice unit, but their desirability rules them out apart from as an occasional singular hero if one turns up: 

Mydas the Mean came as a set with guards and a money chest on a cart, and again a complete set can cost a lot of money. However, the Mydas model turns up on his own fairly frequently and if I can pick one up cheap enough, I may end up using him as the Grand Vizier in charge of my army:

Mordheim

A bit of an oddity, this lone 'Merchant' model turned up as a Hired Sword in Mordheim. It's a lovely model and I'm on the lookout for one: 

Lord of The Rings Ranges

The original Citadel LotR range only included two Haradrim models, one foot and one mounted, and they're a bit cartoony, even for my tastes: 

The current LotR range has a selection of Southron models, but their sculpting style on the whole is completely different to the old Citadel style. Having said that, there are a couple of specific blister packs that I think work with the older models, as shown here: 

Haradrim Abrakhân Merchant Guard: 

Personally I love these guys, and used one for my (competition winning!) Abdul Goldberg conversion, and I think I'll use them again as My Grand Vizier's personal bodyguards. 

Watchers of Kârna:

Again, these guys are really nice, and sculpted similar enough to old school models to work as Assassin type special characters. 

Anyway, that's the Citadel/GW part out of the way as it's almost all OOP and awkward to get hold of. The rest of the ranges in this guide are all currently available, and as they're mainly historical ranges, surprisingly affordable! 

Rank and File Models (Infantry & Cavalry)

Artizan Designs 

Artizan have a couple of great ranges, but specifically their Dark Ages Moor range covers most unit types. These include spearmen, archers, cavalry and Guards ranges, and eventually I think they'll make up the bulk of my army. (when I can finally afford some!) 

Berber Spearmen/Javelinmen:

Berber Command:

Berber Archers: 

Black Guard Spearmen:

Black Guard Command:

Berber Light Cavalry:

Berber Cavalry Command:

Hasham Guard Cavalry:

Hasham Guard Cavalry Command:

Andalusian General: 

Also, in their 2nd Afghan War range, they have a couple of units of Afghan Irregulars armed with muskets, that would work perfectly as skirmishing Nomad Hunter units: 

As you can see, there are models to cover most of the basic unit types, and personally I think they fit in quite well with the old Citadel sculpts. 

EOEOrbis/Black Tree Design

Black Tree have an 'Armies of Islam' range that again can work for most of the rank and file unit types, including some camel riders that Artizan don't cover: 

Infantry Command:

Infantry with Spears:

Infantry with Swords:

Infantry with Bows:

Infantry with Crossbows:

Cavalry Command:

Armoured Cavalry with Spears:

Light Cavalry with Spears:

Light Cavalry with Bows:

Camel Cavalry Command:

Camel Cavalry Light Armoured Spearmen:

Camel Cavalry Unarmoured Spearmen:

Camel Cavalry with Bows:

Much like the Artizan ranges, these make for good, useful rank and file models. The pictures (from the site) aren't great, but I've bought other models from them in the past, and they're mainly sculpted by ex-GW sculptors, so they're very similar in feel. Also, although they're quite cheap already, they have very regular sales, which means you can pick them up for about £1.00 per infantry/£2.50 per cavalry if you wait around a month or so for the range to go on sale again.

Footsore Miniatures

Footsore also have a huge selection in their 'Armies of the Caliphates' range:

It's a lovely range and includes the following:

Arab Chieftain, on Foot & Mounted:

Moorish Black Guard Command, Spearmen and Archers:

Moorish Tribal Warriors: 

Generic Arab Infantry:

Swordsmen:

Spearmen:

Archers:

Slingers:

They also have a small range of Daylami warriors, mercenary warrior tribesmen from the Northern Iran area.

Daylami Command:

Daylami Spearmen:

Daylami Archers:

And finally in the infantry section, they have these 'Naffatun' Fire Bomb throwers:

So, on to their cavalry ranges now:

Light Cavalry Command, Spearmen and Horse Archers: 

Heavy Cavalry Command, Spearmen and Swordsmen:

They also have a range of Mounted Ghulam warriors:

Although Ghulam means 'slave', historically these warrior units were thought to have contained former/non-slaves as well as foreign muslim converts, and rather than being a levy, they were generally well trained and equipped. 

In the Warhammer/Araby world, I think these will be made up of Old Worlders who chose to fight with the Araby army rather than face life as a galley slave etc. Although not free, they are treated well and so are loyal and willing to fight their former comrades, and probably end up under the Janissaries unit type. 

Gripping Beast

Although I've already discounted their plastics due to their more realistic proportions, they have a nice range of metal models in their Moorish and Mutatawwi'a ranges 

Moorish range:

Ben Yusuf and Imam:

I'm not too keen on the Ben Yusuf model, but the Imam looks great. 

Berber Command (1-4): 

Berber Spearmen:

Black Guard:

Andalusian Spearmen:

Arab Archers: 

Moorish Heavy Armoured Cavalry: 

Moorish Light Cavalry

Mutatawwi'a Models:

The Mutatawwi'a were religious warriors inspired by their faith to fight. While not necessarily the best fighters, they were fanatical and fearless in battle.

 Mutatawwi'a Chieftains:

Mutatawwi'a Fanatic Infantry: 

Mutatawwi'a Archers: 

Mutatawwi'a Camel Riders:

Mutatawwi'a Cavalry:

Again, a good solid range of usable models, I particularly like the chieftain mounted on a camel. I'll probably use the Mutatawwi'a to represent the Dervish units.

Scotia Grendel

Scotia have some of the old Harlequin Miniatures Lord of the Rings range models (although not under the LotR name as they no longer have the license). The range in question are the Haradrim, now known as the Men of the South. They have two unit types, Spearmen and Archers: 

Southern Archers:

Southern Spearmen: 

 

Again, they'd make quite good rank and file models, and fit in with the old Citadel style. Harlequin also used to make a fantasy Saracen range, but unfortunately they're long OOP, but I do have 30 of them!

Trent Miniatures

Trent (sold via North Star) have a small range of Ottomans that are particularly suited for the gunpowder troops in the Araby army list, particularly the Jannissaries:

Although there are only 3 models, they come with separate heads, so it at least allows for some slight variation in poses and designs. They also sell separate Jezzails that would be useful for converting other models into Nomad Hunters etc:   

So, that's plenty of models to make up the bulk of the army, but there are a few special unit types missing from the selection so far. Those include Djinn, War Elephants, Magic Carpet Riders, Slave Guards, Blade Dancers, Basilica Cannon, Sandglass of Time and Rocs. 

Characters and Djinn

First up are Djinn, Djinni or Genies, whatever you want to call them, as well as a few characters that I've spotted on my searches. 

Midlam Miniatures 

Midlam has a selection of nice character models in their in their Arabian Nights range such as this lovely Mystic and a Genie:

Otherworld Miniatures 

Otherworld has a great Djinni Model as seen here: 

Reaper Miniatures

There are plenty of Arabic style models in the many Reaper ranges, but stylistically they can be a bit 'modern' looking, with crisper sculpting and more realistic proportions. Having said that I've found a few that could work as heroes, as well as a nice looking assassin:

Jalahandra Warrior 1 &  Warrior 2

Shadow Assassin:

They also have a few Genies/Djinn, but my favourites are Hassan and Naseer: 

War Elephants

Victrix 

Victrix makes a hard plastic kit of 2 African War Elephants with crew: 

Although the crew aren't particularly suitable for Araby, it's a lovely kit and just needs some conversions making to crew it. 

Aventine Miniatures 

These are a company I'd not heard of until doing this research, but does a vast and fantastic range of 28mm War Elephants. They do both African and Indian types, with loads of options for crews, including armoured elephant bodies, howdahs and even elephant head variants. 

The Indian crews are probably more suitable as they look vaguely Arabyan, certainly moreso than the Sassanid types, and they do a unit deal to get 2 complete models with all the crew. 

Pricewise, they're surprisingly about the same as the Victrix plastic models (about £15UK each including crew), and have far more variation options, so I'll eventually probably go with these. 

1st Corps 

These also have a range of Indian Elephants: 

Magic Carpet Riders

This is a bit of a tricky one, as there aren't a huge amount of (decent!) models to represent these guys. I'm planning on doing 2 different types, 'Bombers' with multiple crew, and 'Fighters' with just a single rider. 

For the 'Bomber' type I may have to turn to the conversion route for those, but for carpets with single riders there are a couple of options.

Alternative Armies 

These do a small slave market set, but luckily for us/me, they sell the individual pieces separately: 

The lone carpets on the end (Number 6) are £2 each, so not a huge amount, then its just a case of converting a model to ride it. I'd probably go with archers to cause maximum airborne chaos!

Other potentials are again, from Reaper, a Sorceress on Flying Carpet: 

 

However, I'm not keen on the base or the rider, and it's about £10, so it's not really viable, but thought I'd list it here just because of the limited range. 

Black Tree Designs used to do some carpet riders, but again, they're OOP and difficult to get, which is a shame, as they're ideal: 

Photo found on Pinterest, so I'm unable to attribute it, if it's yours, let me know!

Slave Guards

Slave Guards are next on the list, and although there are plenty of models in the rank and file ranges listed earlier to represent levy models, I'd like to do something a little different with them to properly separate them from 'normal' troops . With that in mind I've got two real options:

Firstly, The Little Soldier Company has some augmented slaves in their Tenoch range. Although a slann/lizardman type range (and nice it is too!) they have a three models that would work as slave warriors: 

The other option would be to use some of GW's Empire Flagellants to represent captured warriors driven crazy and forced to fight their former comrades:

With a bit of converting to give them more 'normal' weapons, they'd look suitably bedraggled and pitiful, and just need a character model to act as the Slavemaster. I'm not sure which one I'm going for yet, although I love the flagellants, they are a little 'modern' looking sculptwise, but I have some already, so it means they won't cost anything extra!

Blade Dancers 

These are a bit of an oddity for me, I'm not overly keen on the concept tbh, and I've struggled to find female sword warriors that make up a coherent unit (and without falling into the porno-miniature subset of manufacturers!) Personally I do have some of the old C30 Amazons and a set of fan sculpts (called the See Thirty Amazons!) that may well do the job though.  

C30 Amazons: 

And their (Modular) See Thirty Tributes:

Other options could potentially be the Frostgrave plastic Female Fighters set: 

They're probably wearing a little more 'practical' clothing than the unit's originator thought of, but if they're fighting anywhere other than the desert, that's probably a good thing ;) Although they're a little on the small/delicate side, that probably doesn't work too badly against them in a traditional female gender construct role. 

There are also the Tharn Bloodweavers from Privateer Press:

They look suitably feral and crazed, and are armed with strange bladed daggers, so suit the fluff. Although it's a bit awkward to get hold of them in the UK, they are still in production and frequently on eBay for about £20 a set. 

Badger Games meanwhile has these 'Elite Amazon Warriors': 

They're a bit 'tits out' which I'm not too keen on, but with their weapons replaced with scimitars could work quite well. 

Lucid Eye also has a small range of Amazons, in both summer and winter gear. The summer ones are here: 

They're a little more realistic, in that at least they have tops on. They'd also need some converting to swap out their bows for swords, but again could look quite good if done well. 

For more um, 'traditional' female fighting concubine types, then possibly repurposing GW Witch Elves could work, or there are any number of individual female barbarian types, both in the OOP Citadel ranges, and many other fantasy ranges, but finding ten or more of them that fit together in a coherent unit is a bit of an issue. 

Basilica Cannon 

The Basilica Cannon is really just a huge siege cannon, so pretty much any cannon model will do, but to really make the Arabyan versions stand out I've had a look to see what's out there that looks different to the Empire's versions, and these are what I've found:

Alternative Armies sells all of their artillery pieces separately without crew, so it's a great way to pick up some interesting guns without the crew you don't need.

As far as unusual models go, they sell a great triple barrelled model: 

It's not particularly huge (about 60mm long in total), but is unusual enough to look like it's come from the Arabyan Master Engineers rather than the forges of Nuln. 

They also do a nice Kraken Bombard: 

Again, not huge, but perfect for a kingdom who's wealth predominantly comes from the sea trade. 

Gringo40s sell a rather impressive looking Manchu 'Dragon Cannon' in their Opium Wars range that I particularly like: 

Old Glory make a Super Heavy Bombard in their Ottoman range: 

And finally, Scotia Grendel make a huge Dwarf Heavy Cannon which certainly looks like it could take down a Basilica wall on its own: 

Sandglass of Time

This is another odd one, and really not one that exists as far as I'm aware, so it'll have to be a conversion job again. Described as a huge hourglass filled with sand taken from Nagash‘s Black Pyramid in Nehekhara, looked after and  operated by a secret Brotherhood known as the Order of Time. 

The closest thing I can think of, offhand, as a base model is one of the GW Age of Sigmar spell counters, the Mortalis Terminexus. It's part of the Endless Spells: Nighthaunt set:

Mounted on a wagon of some sort and guarded by some suitably sinister fanatical monks, I think it could look quite good. I may have to pick one up at some point and give it a go. 

Rocs 

The final unit in the list are Rocs. These are huge, terrifying raptors with sharp beaks and vicious claws. There are plenty of giant eagles and other such birds out there, and as usual, Reaper has something suitable in it's catalogue, the huge Grimtalon the Roc: 

Even though it's in Bones material it's still close to £30, which gives you an idea of it's size! 

Gamezone Miniatures also make three matching Great Eagles in their Elves section:

Other currently available options include the Great Eagles from Games Workshop's Hobbit range:

Not to mention all of the other previous Great Eagles that GW has put out over the years!

Other Unit Options

So, with all of the main units in the extant army lists now covered, there are a few other types of unit that I thought about adding into an Araby force, which were Slingers, Animal Handlers, Giants, Ogres and Jezail gunners. Slingers and Jezail Gunners have already been covered in the Rank and file section. 

Animal Handlers 

Although I was personally going to use the old Citadel Pan Tang Animal Handler team, they are long out of production and so expensive to get hold of. 

Another options would be Gripping Beast's Arab Herders set:

Animal-wise, you can use whatever desert type animals you want, be it wolves, lions, snakes, giant scorpions or whatever springs to mind!

Giants/Ogres (and Halflings...)

There are a few final options in my potential army list and so I thought I'd lump them all in one category. Firstly, giants. I've only really put this in as I've got one, and I've got no idea where he came from! 

*Edit* turns out it's actually a Ral Partha 11-415 Marid model from their Ad&D range. Sadly he's out of production, but he does turn up frequently on eBay for about £10 or so.

As far as Ogres and Halflings go, I've mainly included these in the list due to the fact that I bought into a KS from the ever-wondrous Westfalia Miniatures for their range of Arab Halflings, (or Harabs) and a Hogre:

I genuinely love these models, I really can't say enough good things about them. The only bad thing is that they're not currently available as far as I'm aware, but they do become available occasionally. 

Lorewise, I'll have the Harabs as Mootlanders that emigrated to Araby several centuries ago. Happily tolerated by the Sultans of Araby as both good cooks and great thieves, they fit in very well with both the Arabyan corsair lifestyle, as well as provide their services as cooks to the royal courts. 

There aren't really any other options for Arabyan Halflings(!), but as far as ogres go, there's the Araby Ogre Maneater from GW: 

He's not particularly Arabyan in my eyes, but thought I'd mention him as he's a: currently available, and b: explicitly called Arabyan in the GW fluff. 

So, there you go, my (hopefully) exhaustive guide to miniatures suitable for an Araby army. All photos are owned by the respective manufacturers.

If you spot any errors, or can think of any ranges I've missed (still following my guidelines of being available, fitting in with older Citadel sculpts and not being crap™, then please drop me a comment! 

Other than that, I hope the guide's been useful to you, and thanks for reading this far!