From FrederickC - Painting Challenge XII Rounds Complete

 

It has now been a week since the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge XII came to a close. I have been busy with all those household tasks that my wife tolerantly let me put on hold while I was painting my way into 4th place in the challenge standings. This was my first time actively participating, although last year I 'audited the course' as it were, and I am pretty happy with the results.

I managed to paint 415 foot figures, 2 mounted figures, and 37 vehicles all in 28mm, 1 foot figure in 54mm, and scratch build a figure in 80mm, as well as several cubes worth of terrain. Most of the figures, and all the vehicles  were Second World War Soviets, Germans, Brits, Poles, and French, but the genres ranged from historical to fantasy to science fiction to zombies. (I am nothing if not eclectic in my gaming interests.)

The Assembled Masses

 

Kudos to Curt and all his minions for the hard work they put in monitoring, adjudicating, tabulating, commenting, etc., and for the design of the Challenge Quadrant. I managed to visit 6 outer ring, 5 middle ring, and 4 inner ring planets, as well as the Quadrant sun. The themes provided inspiration to paint up some minis that had long languished in one of my many storage boxes in the basement. (Those boxes are all a bit emptier now.)

All in all, it has been a very enjoyable three months of assembling and painting. Again, I extend my thanks to all those who left comments on my posts. I am looking forward to the start of Painting Challenge XIII next December. In the meantime, I hope to get many of my newly painted figures deployed on the gaming table. You can follow their exploits over on the Fawcett Avenue Conscripts blog.

Cheers,

FrederickC 

Hard at work at my painting desk

From FrederickC: Yet Another Shambling Horde of Zombies (285 points)

 

Just when I thought Mike W had done all his zombies, he posts another twenty. Well, I will see your twenty zombies, and raise you forty more. 😉

This is definitely my last post for the Challenge, and my last batch of zombies as well. It is a mix of 36 Wargames Factory Zombie Vixens, and 24 Zombicide Box of Zombies Set 1 Walk of the Dead. 

 

Horde #2 out for a shamble

The Zombie Vixens come as 3 identical sprues of 12 figures of which 10 are standing, one is missing its lower legs, and the last is missing everything below the diaphragm. All the figures have separate heads and some choice of arms, so it is possible to do a fair bit of 'mix and match', although some combinations fit together better than others. The bases also come as a separate piece, but only enough for the standing figures. I had a half dozen wooden discs of the right diameter in the bits box to put the half figures on, so it all worked out in the end. The figures are finely sculpted with a variety of open wounds, with some showing exposed bones and/or skulls, all looking appropriately gruesome.

The Zombicide set consists of three figures each of eight different poses which are described as 'walkers', 'runners', or 'fatties'. They come as one piece, including the base, so no assembly required. The latter two types will add some variety to the usual slow moving undead, being faster or tougher respectively.

Once the Zombie Vixens were assembled both sets were primed flat grey using a rattle can, and then painted with Vallejo acrylics, followed by a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade. I deliberately left the bases plain so they would look like concrete, rather than adding sand or flocking. As with my earlier Challenge submissions, the Quickshade leaves everything rather glossy, so I will hit these with some clear matt spray once it is warm enough to do it outside.

 

The points being claimed are as follows:

57 x 28mm figures @ 5 points each = 285 points

(I am counting the six literal half figures as half figures 😁)

And with this final submission, my 2021-2022 Painting Challenge comes to a close. Once again, a big thank you to all who left encouraging comments on my posts. They were much appreciated.

Cheers,

FrederickC

From DaveD - Well another great horde of Zombies for this challenge. a great way to finish off!

 

From FrederickC: The Final Quadrant Challenge (92.5 points)

"Bring me a fine collection of Lord of the Rings Figures."

And now we face the final Quadrant Challenge, the Challenge XII Star itself. Our original ship was too battered to continue, suffering from failing engines and an outer hull that was showing stress cracks. It was time to switch to something lighter that had a greater thrust to mass ratio to be able to navigate in the gravitational field of the quadrant star.

 

"Engage!"

As requested by the orb, I present a gathering of Lord of the Rings figures, both Good and Evil, that I hope will be pleasing to the Snowlord. Some of these have been in the painting queue for several years, while others are recent purchases to add to the collection. All were painted in my usual style, starting with a coat of black primer, followed by Vallejo acrylics, and then a mix of ink washes and/or highlights until I got the look I wanted. May they be deemed worthy of the Final Challenge.

The first group is a trio of Orc Trackers that have been in the 'PENDING' box for a number of years. These appear in the Barad-dûr section of the latest version of the Armies of Middle Earth manual, but now seem to be out of production. In addition to their role as trackers, they will also be useful to depict dismounted Warg riders.

Next up are the three Orc Captains, Gorbag, Grishnákh, and Shagrat (holding Frodo's mithril shirt). Like the Orc Trackers, they have also been in the 'PENDING' box for a while. These appear in the army lists in the Mordor section.

Gorbag, Grishnákh, and Shagrat

Shagrat, Grishnákh, and Gorbag

The last of the Evil characters is an Orc Shaman, who also appears in the Barad-dûr section of the latest version of the Middle Earth army lists. He looks pretty badass with his collection of skulls. This is another metal figure that I have had for a while. A plastic version of the figure is available from Games Workshop as a boxed set which includes one mounted on a Warg.

Three skulls (not that I am counting)

 

The first group for the Good side are three leaders of the Ithilien Rangers - Faramir, Captain of Gondor, Madril, Captain of Ithilien, and Damrod, Ranger of Ithilien. These are a very recent purchase and came as a blister containing all three figures. They will be ready to command the company of Rangers that I painted last April.

Faramir, Madril, and Damrod

Damrod, Madril, and Faramir

The last offering is Éowyn (as Dernhelm) and Meriadoc, Squire of Rohan. While I had already painted metal miniatures of Éowyn, I was so impressed by the newer plastic set of figures that Barks had submitted for the Challenge, I had to buy a box for myself. I especially liked the way Merry can be placed in front of Éowyn, or removed as the scenario requires. Not having any contrast paints in my arsenal, I used my usual technique of starting with a black primer, followed by Vallejo acrylics, with highlights and washes as needed to get the final result. Since the metal miniatures I had depicted Éowyn without a helmet, I went with the 'helmet on' version with the plastic set.

 

Éowyn with Merry

Éowyn with Merry

Éowyn without Merry

Éowyn without Merry

Éowyn and Merry on foot

Merry and Éowyn on foot

New and old mounted version of Éowyn

Old and new dismounted version of Éowyn

The points being claimed are as follows:

1 x 28mm mounted figure @ 10 points = 10 points

12½ x 28mm foot figure @ 5 points = 62.5 points

(I am counting the mounted version of Merry as a half figure)

Challenge Quadrant location (Quadrant XII Star) @ 20 points each = 20 points

 

At this point, I am not sure if this will be my last submission for the Painting Challenge. I have another 60 zombies sitting on my desk, but I can't guarantee I will have them completed before the deadline. We will give it the 'old college try', as they say. This submission will put me over my target, so it's all bonus from here on. This was my first year of active participation in  the Painting Challenge, although last year I 'played along at home'. I have been impressed by both the level of skill demonstrated by the other participants, as well as the volume of output. Kudos to one and all.

Just in case this is my last submission, I want to thank all those who left encouraging comments on my posts - (in no particular order): MartinC, IainW, GregB, RayR, Codsticker, TashaH, DallasE, PeterD, TamsinP, Barks, SanderS, TeemuL, MikeP, StuartL, Curt, DaveV, PaulSS, DaveD, SimonG, Millsy, Nick, BruceR, PeterB, HerrRobert, KenR, DavidB, MikeW, MattW, KerryT, JezzT, AdamC, TobiasK, Bedford, Evan Hughes, and Anibal Invictis.

[As much as possible, I have tracked down the name people have been assigned on the participants list. Hopefully I haven't missed anybody.]

Cheers,

FrederickC.

A fine collection of LoTR goodies Frederick, the orb is pleased.  While the orcs are terrific (and skullacious) my favourites are the Eowyn/Merry combo, great work on these lovely sculpts.

You've had a terrific challenge Frederick, hope to see you again next year.    

From FrederickC: A Horde of Shambling Zombies (300 points)

 

Now that Mike W seems to have completed his massive horde of Zombies, I think it might be safe to start working on my own horde. I am starting with two boxes of plastic Wargames Factory Zombies that I picked up at a local hobby store at least a decade ago. They have languished in the 'big box of unpainted minis' until now. These seem to have gone out of production in the interim.

Each box contained five identical sprues with enough parts to build 30 figures. Every sprue provided one figure in a lab coat, four different pairs of legs, four upper torsos, and a variety of heads. All the left arms were part of the upper torso, but the right arms were separate. This allows for some mix and match, although some combinations work better than others. I will let the pictures tell the rest.

The figures were assembled and then glued onto 1 inch fender washers. I wanted to leave the bases quite plain to look like concrete, so I used some spackling paste to create a smooth transition from the molded base to the washer. Once everything was dry and sanded, the figures were primed grey from a rattle can. They were then painted using Vallejo acrylics, followed by a coat of Army Painter Strong Tone Quickshade. Here is the end result.

 

The Horde, out for an evening shamble

The points being claimed are as follows:

60 x 28mm figures @ 5 points each = 300 points

While I have more Zombies lined up in the queue, it is going to be down to the wire to see if I get them completed by March 20th. 

What?!  More flipping Zombies!  That's just what we need, and I'm all out terms to apply to the shambling semi-dead.

Anyway, that's an impressive horde Frederick. You've done well to get some variation into the somewhat repetitive figure selection.

FrederickC's Challenge

Frederick stares into the orb of ice and tries not to think too hard about the origin of the greenish yellow glow.

The orb speaks.  "Frederick you have done well, but you must prove your self worthy by completing a final challenge."

Frederick stammers in reply "W-w-what must I do to appease the Snowlord and show that I am worthy?"

"Bring me a fine collection of Lord of the Rings Figures".  

From FrederickC: Another Mixed Bag of WW2 Vehicles (267.5 points)

 

Last November fellow Conscript DallasE and I were discussing the idea of a France 1940 scenario for Bolt Action. We had played 'The Battle of Stonne' scenario from the Bolt Action campaign book 'Germany Strikes' in October 2021, and were looking at another chance to pit French and German armour against each other. We settled on 'The Battle of Orp' where the 3rd Panzer Division met the 3^e DLM (3rd Light Mechanized Division). A few of the vehicles needed were not in either of our collections, plus I had been looking at ordering some German and Soviet trucks to transport troops on the battlefield, as well as some more early Soviet armour. In the end  I ordered 3 GAZ AAA trucks, 3 T-26 tanks, 3 Krupp Protze trucks, 2 Panzer III Ausf E tanks, and a Hotchkiss H39 tank from Rubicon Models. The past week has been a mad scramble to get all the kits assembled and painted in time for Monday posting day.

 

A group shot, just for Teemu.

A size comparison of the three tank types, all 1/56 scale.

The GAZ-AAA was a truck produced at the Gorkovsky Avtomobilny Zavod (Gorky Automobile Plant) from 1936 to 1943 as the company's first 6-wheeled vehicle. During that time, over 37,000 trucks of various patterns were built. The Rubicon kits were easy to assemble, and  could be completed with or without a driver in the cab. (I went with the driver option.) It comes with a one-piece tarp that can be snapped into place, so I can field them with the tarp on or off. They will provide some necessary transport for all my Soviet infantry.

 

GAZ-AAA truck with tarps

GAZ-AAA truck without tarps

The T-26 tank kit comes with all the necessary parts to build one of ten different variants of the tank, which was based on Vickers E Six Ton. The T-26 entered active service for the Red Army in 1932, and it was used in many conflicts of the 1930s as well as during the Second World War. When production ceased in 1941, over 10,000 tanks of all variants had been produced. Of all the options available, I went with the M1933 turret, and assembled one with a radio aerial along with a commander that came with the Warlord Games BT-7 tanks I had painted in January. 

 

The German Krupp Protze was a truck used by the Wehrmacht to transport troops and tow the 37mm anti-tank gun. While I have a number of German 251/1 half-tracks, the reality is that most Panzergrenadiers rode in trucks. Using Bolt Action rules, the cost of a truck is less than half the cost of a half-track. The Rubicon kits can be built as the troop transport variant, with the tarp either up or down, or to tow the PAK. I built all of mine as transports, so I may end up ordering another as a towing vehicle.

 

The German Panzer III Ausf. E was an early model of that tank armed with a 37mm gun in the turret. It saw service in Poland and France before being replaced by upgraded versions. The Rubicon kits supply enough parts to build one of the E, F, or G variants of the tank. I added a commander that came with the Bolt Action Panzer I tanks I built in December as I liked it better than the one that came with the models. I painted up my Panzer IIIs as part of the 3rd Panzer Division with the Berlin bear symbol on the side of the turret.

 

The French Hotchkiss H39 was an improved version of the H35. Some models were further upgraded to a longer-barrelled SA38 37mm anti-tank gun. The Rubicon kit is a resin model with enough extra parts to build the French tank with either the SA38 or the earlier Puteaux SA18 low velocity gun, as well as a different cupola if you want to build a version of the tank in German service. 

 

The points being claimed are as follows:

12 x 28mm vehicles @ 20 points each =240 points

5.5 x 28mm figures @ 5 points each = 27.5 points

(I am counting the 3 Soviet drivers and two tank commanders as half figures)

I am really enjoying this collection of early war kit.  Although I had to do a double take as your lead into France 1940 was followed by T-26s, but what the heh?  I am pleased to see that you went for the premium AAA grade GAZ instead of the standard utility grade (poor pun), and more over that you've got a proper amount of soft skin transport for both Soviet and German forces.  I've always had a soft spot for the T26, and French armour is always entertaining.  Well done.