IHMN: The Wicked Witch of the West

"Take special care of those ruby slippers, I want those most of all. Now fly! Fly!"

From the private journal of Dr. John Watson:

“Data! Data! Data!” Holmes cried impatiently. “I can’t make bricks without clay. Who is this woman?

 The Wicked Witch of the West Adventuring Company.

"Good Lord Holmes!  Whatever is the matter?"

"I know, my dear Watson, that you share my love of all that is bizarre and outside the conventions and humdrum routine of everyday life. Now that the Witch King is safely locked up in Astragard I'm afraid that evilness that is Moriarty has somehow ripped open the fabric between the worlds with his discovery of the gates and unleased another horror on our world.

The Wicked Witch of the West.

Here I had heard what he had heard, I had seen what he had seen, and yet from his words it was evident that he saw clearly not only what had happened, but what was about to happen, while to me the whole business was still confused and grotesque.

“He is the Napoleon of crime, Watson. He is the organizer of half that is evil and of nearly all that is undetected in this great city, He is a genius, a philosopher, an abstract thinker. He has a brain of the first order. He sits motionless, like a spider in the center of its web, but that web has a thousand radiations, and he knows well every quiver of each of them. He does little himself. He only plans.  You know my methods, Watson, There is nothing like first-hand evidence and for once in my life I am at a loss. My name is Sherlock Holmes.  It is my business to know what other people don’t know!

And I don't know anything about these inter-dimensional beings!"

 Professor Moriarty.

"Inter-dimensional beings?  Surely you jest?"

“The world is full of obvious things which nobody by any chance ever observes," stated Holmes.
"How often have I said to you that when you have eliminated the impossible, whatever remains, however improbable, must be the truth?" Suddenly the dreamer disappeared, and Holmes, the man of action, sprang from his chair.

“Well, Watson."

"Yes, Holmes?
'I believe the wheel has turned yet again–and now it's back to work! It's time to reach out to the experts - Misatonick University of the United States of America. 

The Wicked Witch of the West is the malevolent ruler of the Winkie Country. This is not the pathetic woman who accomplished nothing in the novel Wicked but one of the most evil and despicable creatures of all time. Her wickedness had dried her up long ago and she is extremely and deathly afraid of the effects that water may have on her.  Despite her fear of water, the Wicked Witch of the West is one of the most powerful witches in all of Oz. Her power is described as being so great that even Glinda the Good Witch of the South feared her. She has recently discovered how to cross the Burning Desert using the portals that "an intermediary" provided her.

Name: The Wicked Witch of the West

Pluck: 2+

Leadership: +2

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +1

Shooting Value: +1

Talents: Flying, Dreadful, Erudite Wit, Fanatic, Stealthy, 30 points of Mystic Powers.

Basic Equipment: Magic Broom (Fires fire balls line of site fired at one target and counts as a flame attack on all figures within 3". Range is 18" range, Flying and in fighting counts as a Quarter Staff), Pistol

Armor: 10

Cost: 97 points
Special Rule: If the Wicked Witch is hit or falls into any kind of water she must make 2 Pluck rolls to survive.

The Winged Monkeys

The Winged monkeys are mechanical constructions made by the Winkies who are famous for the engineering skills. The monkeys are apparently intelligent enough to obey commands, but do not speak.

 Name: The Winged Monkeys

Pluck: 5+

Leadership:0

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +1

Shooting Value: N/A

Talents: Flying, Night Eyes, Fearless

Basic Equipment: Steam Claws, Steam Dynamo

Armor: 9

Cost: 44 points

 The Winkie Guard 

The Winkie Country is the Western region of the Land of Oz and is ruled by the Wicked Witch of the West. The Winkie Guards are the Wicked Witch of the West's slave foot soldiers from Oz. They are known for their infamous chant, which goes, "Oh-Ee-Yah! Ee-Oh-Ah!". They mostly guard the Castle Grounds.

Name: The Winkie Guard

Pluck: 6+

Leadership:0

Speed: 1

Fighting Value: +1

Shooting Value: +2

Talents: Stealthy. One Winkie can be upgraded to Sergeant at 9 points with a leadership of +1 and a FV of +2.

Basic Equipment: Muzzle loading rifle, fighting knife

Armor: 8

Cost: 16 points
Special Rule: If a character kills the Wicked Witch of the West, the Winkie Guard will pledge their loyalty to that character and will be controlled by the player who has the character.

 Gargoyle 

It's a gargoyle!  What more needs to be said?

Name: Gargolye

Pluck: 3+

Leadership:0

Speed: 0

Fighting Value: +5

Shooting Value: 0

Talents: Terrifying, Beserker, Numb, Flying, Strongman

Basic Equipment: Large Sword, Bullwhip, Talons (equivalent to fighting knife)

Armor: 11

Cost: 72 points

 A battle amongst Titans:  The King of the Beasts versus the Gargolye.

Design Notes:  I decided to keep the Western Theme introduced by Reaper Miniatures with their Wild West Oz range of figures.  The Winkies are Arab slavers from North Star miniatures and the Gargoyle is from the classic game Hero Quest.  I also wanted to balance my fictional world of 1895 with the original Oz books and the 1938 movie version of the Wizard of Oz.