Hermes of the Golden Wand

"I was met by golden-wanded Hermes; he seemed a youth in the lovely spring of life, with the first down upon his lip."

Homer, Odyssey 10.135

"He fastened on his ankle-wings, grasped in his fist the wand that charms to sleep, put on his magic cap, and thus arrayed Jove's son sprang from his father's citadel down to earth."

Ovid, Metamorphoses 1.583

Herald of Zeus, god of travelers, merchants, shepherds and thieves, guide of the dead. Hermes has always been the Olympian god that I most ... like. I'm not sure that we should like the Olympians. Aside from Athena (who can still be pretty childish), they all exhibit rather unlikable traits. Regardless, I've always had a soft spot for Hermes. 

This one is not technically Hermes the god, but is supposed to be a gladiatorial arena official from Crusader Miniatures. Still not my finest painting - I seem to have lost my mojo for 28mm painting - the sculpt itself is rather nice. Using this figure as the god rather than a mortal works for me - he is 28mm, no larger, which is fine as Hermes repeatedly walks among mortals without making much of a stir.

In Of Gods and Mortals, the rules really stress Hermes' speed over any sense of power. He is one of the weakest deities in the game, but he is hard to shoot and can move to anywhere on the table so long as it is an uninterrupted straight line. That means that he is really useful support asset, adding the equivalent of eight mortals to any melee. I'm really looking forward to giving him a whirl!