Please don't try this at home

This afternoon there was a brief break in the rain, so I decided to prep some miniatures.  After washing to de-grease, I popped them in the oven to quickly dry them so I could prime; I think I may have left them in there just a few minutes too long!  :-)

Luckily the other 2 dozen survived, it could have been far, far worse. 

Hoplites

I’ve finished basing the hoplites in my recent post, and rebased my existing Foundry “Athenian” hoplites onto larger bases, so that most are now in 8’s.  I boosted the total numbers by repainting my old Lunar Blue Dragoons (the minis with the tall crests), and mixing them in; they scrubbed up OK.  Economical, neh?  Upgraded the tuftage, too, to my 2013 standard.  'Ave a click.

I took the opportunity to very roughly split out the later hoplites with helms with separate cheeek flaps and Pilos, from those with the earlier Corinthian and Chalcidian helmets, and put them on separate bases.  The above unit has mostly earlier, and the below mostly later helmets, although purists will quail...  Later, I’ll build distinct units with corresponding shield designs, which became simpler and more abstract over time.

In a few weeks I plan to paint up 8 more Spartans.  That’ll give me 5 units of 36 hoplites, and two of 24, which will have to do for the time being, because I urgently need to start painting minis with rather longer pointy sticks.

Jenga Phalanx

These are a continuation of a very old project, which is to build a Ptolemaic phalanx on a grand scale, for use in a grand re-fight of Raphia at Partizan in early June next year.

The plan is to combine these beautifully sculpted Polemarch Machimoi (Egyptian Phalangites) from Gripping Beast, with their Foundry equivalents.  I absolutely love the tall crested helmets, which I assume are based on the Sidon stelae.

When I started this project (over 2 years ago!), I made the mistake of using an Army Painter primer.  This provided a convenient base colour, but created a surface textured like fine grain sandpaper, which wasn’t at all good to paint over, and which put me off the project after I’d only managed to complete 30 miniatures (one shown in the link, at centre).  This time, I’m stripping the remaining primed miniatures and using my trusty can of Halford’s white.  The Jenga blocks are mounts for ease of painting.

I need an awful lot more of these miniatures to build a phalanx of the large size I covet.  If you happen to have a bag of these Polemarch phalangites, or the similar Foundry miniatures in the link, that you always meant to paint but never quite got around to, please drop me a line.  I’d be delighted to swap for them, or buy them off you!  

Hoplites

Just so you don't think I've gone off and left you, a quick and somewhat blurry WIP shot of the 32 Foundry hoplites I've just finished (pre-varnish and basing).

I hope to get to grips with them, tonight...  because other projects beckon, of which more, anon.

November painting table

A quick shot of the painting table.  The celts at the back are "stuck", I just can't bring myself to work on them, some hoplites have pushed in (othismos, anyone?) and I'm painting some more goths at the front.  I'm also re-painting 18 other Greek hoplites, not shown.

The 3 goths or saxons at the front right, in red, I bought painted in a bag at the Bristol warboot around 6 years ago.  They are lovely (beautiful triangles on one tunic fringe), I wonder who painted them?  

The very last of my vikings

Today I’ll be listing on eBay the personality figures for the Viking army I’ve recently posted.   All images can be clicked for greater detail.  They are all matt varnished and based to a high standard.  Links go to the relevant auctions, I've started them all at 99p.

28mm Foundry Viking Jarl with Standard.  The Jarl is armed with a 2 handed axe, and his standard-bearer a sword ; perfect as a CinC or army standard.  These Foundry miniatures have been painted to a very high standard and based on a 40mm diameter magnetised MDF base.

28mm Viking Looters.  Christmas is coming, the goose is getting fat- oh no, the Vikings have got it!  Dixon Vikings, painted to a superb standard.

28mm Viking Drinker.  Every Viking camp needs one!   Another Dixon Viking, painted to a very high standard.

28mm Viking adventurer.  Rather reminds me of Viggo Mortensen, this chap...  swordsman with bow.  Painted to a high standard.

28mm Viking Berserk.  Enthusiastic Berserk!  Painted to a high standard.

And last but certainly not least... 28mm Viking Cart.  This is a lovely Gripping Beast handcart with two beautifully naturalistic Viking looters, again painted and based to a superb standard; my favourite of all the pieces.  Perfect in a camp, or as an objective marker.

And those are the very last miniatures in my viking army; unless you want my longhouse... which is for sale, but not going on eBay.

Update- all sold, thanks!

Viking Rump Sale

Not an exercise in extreme butchery, but a link to the rump of miniatures from my 28mm Viking army and some Crusaders that I'm listing on eBay, today, at the low, low price of 99p per unit.  All the miniatures are mounted on magnabased card and can easily be removed, if required to be re-based for different systems (Saga, for example). 

All the images are clickable. 

8 Normans, or Crusaders.  Gripping Beast.  Very nicely painted and based.

Viking Jarl and Huscarls (16)- Essex with some Foundry.  Tabletop painting standard, but nice command.

Viking Huscarls (20)- mostly Essex.  Tabletop painting standard.

More Huscarls (8)- Gripping Beast.  Nicely painted and well based.

Archers (8) and Slingers (3)- Essex and Citadel.  Tabletop painting standard.

Viking Bondi (24) - Mostly Citadel, some Foundry.  Nicely painted and based (see below for closeup).

Update- all sold, thanks!

FleaBay Greeks

Following my recent game against Wabby George’s Greeks, I decided to refurbish and slightly expand my own, smallish, hoplite collection.  I plan to expand and reorganise to 6 units of 36 warriors, formed in 3 ranks.  Three of these will be Spartans, one Tegean allies, and two of other Greeks.

This particular unit originally consisted of 16 Greek hoplites in attacking poses, most of whom are repaints of a cheap but tatty eBay purchase.  The helmet styles are an eclectic mix of Corinthian, Chalcidian and Attic.  I’ve painted 8 more to match, tarted up some of the shields and rebased them into 3 double-elements of 8.  When time permits, I’ll add a rear rank of 12 and they will be done!

Mountain of Shame

Legatus Hedlius has bravely shown his mountain of unpainted metal miniatures, and I felt that, in the interest of disclosure, I should respond by showing (most) of my own.  The below are my unpainted metal miniatures storage areas.

Above is the core of the lead mountain; Foundry boxes, full of Foundry miniatures (mostly Copplestone and Saleh), on top of a bookcase.  I once suffered an avalanche, when a box at the bottom gave way under the weight; the aftermath wasn't pretty.  Perhaps 2000 28mm metal miniatures.

Below is the one of the foothills, on top of another bookcase, this time including quite a few Perrys, some lovely Foundry Saleh Persians, and a generous force of Aventines.  Perhaps 800 unpainted miniatures.

I almost forgot this next heap, on the right- here are more Aventines, A&A miniatures MIR Romans, and others, including some Native Americans (never going to get painted, those!).  Also in this pile are quite a few painted but un-based miniatures (oh the horror!).  At least 500 unpainted miniatures.

Finally there are the miniatures stored in the loft; I reckon that there are at least 1000 up there, that I can't fit in downstairs.  These include fantasy figures, a couple hundred more Foundry Romans, Perry metal Napoleonics and such forth.

In total I estimate that I have 4300+ unpainted 28mm metals (and perhaps 1000 unpainted Perry and Victrix plastics).  My unpainted miniatures actually outnumber my painted!

Oh the shame...

Striking Gold

...so I suspected that I had a few Foundry Spartans left, lurking somewhere deep in the lead mountain.  A major excavation discovered no less than 100 Spartans!  Moreover, one of the test pits struck gold; I came across no less than 5 of the recent Foundry Celtic chariots,hidden at the very core of the mountain.  This completely forgotten purchase will be directly useful in the big chariot project that I have slowly burning away in the background.

Life has been interfering with art, recently.  My mother-in-law is moving nearer to us and I'm doing a lot of the organising, which means I'm not going to have much time to game over the next month.  I'm still getting plenty of painting time, though, and have several projects inching toward completion, of which more, anon.