Wednesday, 11 May 2011

Black Powder


A quick post-play posting- tonight we played our second test game of Black Powder.  It went well.  At the moment, in order to get to grips with the rules, we have just been using infantry, but next week we'll add some guns or cavalry. 

This bodes well for Hail Caesar, which shares a lot of the same mechanics, but which I've not yet tried, becuase I find the style in which they are written makes them hard to learn from the rulebook.  Still I will get there...

Saturday, 7 May 2011

Young Lions

This is a clickable WIP shot of the Leones Iuniores, my latest Late Roman unit (Auxilia Palatina).  The painting is just about complete, although they still need assembling, varnishing and basing.  These have only taken six (albeit rather long) painting sessions; I only started painting them on Monday!  I must be getting faster!


After these, I hope to knock up a few quick supporting units based around some Black Tree figures I bought painted on eBay, a few years back...  and I'll need to pause to make up a big batch of bases, as I'm almost out. 

Thursday, 5 May 2011

Celtic Horse

These are some cavalry I bought/painted around 6 years ago, recently retouched and with three additional painted by Nick.



The new 3 (below left) are the newer Gripping Beast Picts painted by Nick.   Nick's painting is way better than mine, especially the shields, but I don't like the blocky style of the newer slighly larger Gripping Beast figures as much as the older, more naturalistic ones.


Nick really nailed the shields (can only see one, properly, below on the right).  I was pleased with the way the windsock came out.


And now all together!  Who's got the mead?  Off to Cattraeth! 

Tuesday, 3 May 2011

Arthur of the Votadini

These lovely minis were painted for me by Nick Speller (I merely based them).  I think they are some of Nick's finest work, especially the cloak and tunic on Arthur.  Fabulous.

This particular Arthur will be a warleader of some post-Roman celtic cavalry, that I'll be posting shortly (I started painting the units around 7 years ago, finished them last week!). 

 

Gotta love the hound, too.  The Arthur model is one of Gripping Beast's finest, super work I reckon.

Monday, 2 May 2011

WIP Late Romans

I'm still finishing off old stuff, and here are 24 Romans from 4 different ebay purchases, that I'll work on this week, who will become another unit of Auxilia.  They are in a pretty shocking state... to be honest it would be better to strip them, and start from fresh, but I'm too lazy.


Saturday, 30 April 2011

Tribunes!

These figures were superbly painted for me by Andres of Einar Olafson Painting (the photo is clickable, and well worth it!).


Andres is clearly a fantastic painter!  I'm going to have a very careful look at these, to see if I can inprove my own technique, although I know I can't do detail like he does.  Then I'll base them as an army command stand.

There are some lovely pics in Andres's Gallery, I particularly rate this legionary (why don't I own any Roman mules?  A shocking oversight), and this chap, who reminds me very much of the 1962 film Taras Bulba, that I saw over 40 years ago at my Grandma's flat in Cosham, near Portsmouth.  And which I remember like it was yesterday.

I met Andres briefly at Salute and do hope our paths will cross again...  If you want to commission anything he lives in Wales and can be reached at einarolafson@gmail.com

ps one of Andres other blogs, Softwars, has some astonighing 20mm scale Romans on it.

Friday, 29 April 2011

Nice day for a... white wedding

My tickets to the Royal Wedding having been unaccountably lost in the post, I've decided, instead, to celebrate in my own very particular way, by posting (clickable) photos of my refurbished Hun detatchment.  Whilst I watch on HDTV.


The figures are a real mix; mainly Chiltern, but with Essex, Gripping Beast and a lonely Curtey's Mongol.  There is a single Roman in there, and when I expand this unit I'll include more "Roman deserters".  Many of them were bought painted on eBay and have been retouched, others, pained to match.

Below is Attila, Scourge of God.  Gripping Beast on a Foundry steed.

Here are the heavy cavalry, I'm planning to expand these to 18 figures in due course.
The horse archers (above) are based dynamically, firing as they cross the front of the enemy units.  I need a lot more of these, but have unfortunately misplaced my box unpainted Huns, somewhere in the Lead Mountain.

This last unit is unusual; they are fantasy figures, designed and cast by my Scottish friend John Smillie, and I believe this is the only unit of them in existance. 

I'm very pleased with the way the figures from disparate sources have come together.  There are not yet enough for an army, but just about enough for a wing.