From Mike W: More Goblins and 28mm 17th Century Musketeers (260 Points)

Never mind Goblins being at the 7th Level of Dante's Inferno! It's more like Pandora's Box here...

The Goblin infested 7th Level of
Dante's Inferno!!! Note the completed
40 figure Goblin unit mentioned
last week

All the old unpainted (some undercoated) goblin figures that I have in the 'Plastic Mountain' are literally kept in a green A4 storage box, having opened it to paint the Goblins last week - low and behold a unit of Spider Ricers and Wolf riders have forced their way out onto the workbench for painting.

Sadly there are similar boxes of Orc and Empire figures all awaiting a paint job...

So these are my first to batches this week. 10 x Forest Goblin Spider Riders were purchased when they first came out but never painted, I guess I didn't really overly like the figures at the time - GW had just moved away form the multi-part kits that allowed figure builds with real variety of poses,instead they moved to manufacturing  'fixed pose' figures, I wasn't (and I guess am still not) a great fan.

But time has mellowed me and I was actually taken by the detail on the bases and thought why not give them ago!

First group of 5 Spider Riders

I decided to base coat the spiders a deep red and then dry brush over with a brighter red on the main body and legs. Then transition the legs from red to brown to a bone type colour to make these really stand out.

The whole spider was then washed in Sepia Ink to blend the colours together.

The Goblins were painted up in a pretty standard manner, I decided the feathers would all be white with black tips in a nod to Native American decorations and these were offset by red items - as if they had come off the spiders them selves.

Second group of 5 Spider Rides

Goblin skin was washed green and the other parts washed with Nuln Oil to give that grubby appearance I think they should have.

The bases I covered in sand and electrostatic grass as usual - but I took care to keep as much of the additional detail as possible on them, tiny red spiders, skulls and tree stumps etc.


Calculation - 10 x 28mm  mounted figures @ 10 points ea = 100 Points

Next up were 8 x Goblin Wolf Riders. I have a silly number of these units already - maybe that's why these guys never got painted before now, that and they seem to have taken a bit of a battering in the Green Box' over the years so I have had to add replacement tails for a number of the wolves.....

... some of these are not the original wolves tails in the kits so I have substituted other animal tails! In the rough and tumble of battle - I'm sure a few wolves would have lost their tails!

8 x Goblin Wolf Riders

Goblins themselves again painted in my usual manner, however, with the wolves I undercoat these black, then dry-brush dark grey and then light grey and then very lightly dry-brush white, details such as mouth, teeth, tongue and other armour etc are picked out, all before a wash of watered down black ink.

I try and give some uniformity to a unit by keeping shields similar, these were all painted on the frame and then super-glued on when dry, before giving the figures a series of washed to tome all together.

Bases done in my usual manner.


Calculation - 8 x 28mm  mounted figures @ 10 points ea = 80 Points

NCO /Musketeer stand,
awaiting matt varnish

Next are the 16 musketeers to go with the command and pike stands from Robel's Saxon Infantry Regiment,that I completed last week. These are split in to 2 eight man wings, I group them 4 to a base,with one base having an NCO.

Musketeer stand,
wet weather preventing Matt
varnish spray

The painting technique is again as previously described,the hard part here being the number of buttons and apostles that need to be painted in. That said - I have got reasonably good at doing the apostles, its the buttons that kill me! Up to 20 buttons a figure,you can't help but get 'over-flow' onto surrounding coat colors and this just means going back over every figure to fix such errors...

Finished Musketeer stands, Robel's Saxon Infantry Regiment, 4 figures per stand, 4 stands.

I took above photos whilst waiting for the weather to improve and allow me to use the Army Painter Matt Varnish Spray, hopefully I can add one of the finished unit as a whole over the weekend prior to the deadline time..

... and here they are! A break in the weather and a couple hours of sunshine!

Robel's Regiment, I opted for green pikes and matching
apostles to help tie the look and feel of the unit together.

Parading in front of the Benkendorf Regiment that I got completed a couple weeks ago, these guys will be the core of a Saxon brigade that I can use in any siege of Vienna Game. I usually have brigades of 3 or 4 regiments so the next Saxon unit will likely be the last and I might do it in grey coats - giving a nod to the records suggesting this was a transitional time for uniforms.


Calculation - 16 x 28mm  mounted figures @ 5 points ea = 80 Points

TOTALS =100+ 80 +80 = 240 Point

Very nice work again, Mike. I wonder how your Saxons will fare against the mounted goblins!

I have learned today about apostles! Great colour choices.

Barks