From StuartL - We're Going To Need A Bigger Limo - Lady Sarah's Limousine (92 Points)

Hi all,

During the previous challenge, I didn't make much use of Lady Sarah's Star Yacht until very late in the challenge. This year I have decided to make more of an effort and ride around the AHPC Studios in style. Having posted my first entry at the Under Construction part of the studio, I now need to jump all the way across the site to the World Cinema area. So, to that end, I present my first entry fee for Lady Sarah's Limousine service.

This model is a metal figure from Reaper Miniatures. If you have been following my challenge progress over the years, you will know that I have a fairly extensive collection of Reaper's plastic Bones figures from their various kickstarters. I don't have that many metal figures from them, which is a bit of a shame. Back when I started playing RPGs regularly (around 1999-2000ish), I used to pore over the Reaper catalogue of minis and dream of owning large parts of their range. Even now, their metal models are really appealing, though nowhere near as affordable as their plastics. I think I bought this figure about ten years ago and it has been languishing in my to do pile ever since.

So, I will apply for my Limo ride using this red-headed warrior. 

Speaking of red-heads (and Reaper Bones minis), what are those thunderous footsteps I am hearing?

Over the course of their kickstarters, Reaper have released quite a few giant figures and (given that they are cheap as chips), I bought a lot of them. Over Christmas, I got started on these three Fire Giants and their Lava Hound. The dog and it's handler are separate models, the chain plugs into the back of the collar and the two figures can be set-up as individuals.

Each of these figures is made from Reaper's somewhat bendy plastic. Each of them is chunky enough that it doesn't matter, but the chain whip on the guy below is very flexible, which meant that I could hold it to one side while painting.

These brutes were, honestly, a bit of a chore to paint. Some models are really easy to put a brush too and others aren't. I was about done painting these guys about 20 minutes in, but persevered to get them done. The Lava Hound was kind of fun to do, but the giants just have so much surface area to cover that they really seemed to drag.

So, how big are they? The shortest of the giants is just over 80mm tall, and the dog towers over most 28mm scale minis. Included below is a group shot showing the giants and the metal model from further up the post for scale.

By my reckoning, (subject to Snow Lord approval of course), my tally should be:

3x Monsters @20 points = 60 Points

1x 40mm Mini @7 points = 7 Points

1x 28mm Mini @5 points = 5 Points

1x Limousine Ride @20 points = 20 Points

Total = 92 Points

For my side duels, I'm going to claim 1 Squirrel Point for the Fire Giants.

My Side Duels:

Squirrels - 4

Anglo-Saxons, Vikings, Dwarves, Fire Giants.

Skullz - 0

Turnips - 0

Next up, World Cinema.

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Very nice work, Stuart. Reaper has been such a big champion for plastic/resin models that it's easy to forget that they had (and still have) a rather huge range of metal miniatures. The red-headed warrior is excellent, and so are the russet giants she has in tow. I especially like the Lava Hound with the effect of his heat cracked skin. As you say, I think Sarah's Limo may be a little tight hauling these folks around, but I'm sure she has a roof rack and some bungie cords to make it work.

- Curt

From DougM - Gethen - Ice Cold but no Alex - (30 points)

Quickly checking the stash.. aggh.. the German winter grenadiers would take too long, but what's this.. another 3d print? A Storm Giant you say.. right, that's Gethen sorted. Not my normal stuff, and just lots of different colours, washes and overpainting. The Van Gogh of giants perhaps.  But cold.. very cold...  

This chap stands 65mm tall, so counting as a 54 mm figure = 10 plus 20 for Gethen = 30 by my maths. And I think that now adds 'Fantasy' as a Squirrel! Taking my total Squirrel points to 13.

• 1/200 WW2 Japanese Aircraft
• 1/200 WW2 US Aircraft
• 1/200 WW2 British Aircraft
• 1/200 WW2 German Aircraft
• 1/144 WW1 British Aircraft
• 1/144 WW1 German Aircraft
• 28mm German Armour
• 28mm Japanese Armour
• 28mm 12th SS Panzer infantry
• 28mm Indian Mutiny Sepoys
• 28mm Dr Who
• 28mm Austrian Napoleonic
• 28mm (and larger!) Fantasy

***

 

Very nice painting on this chilly fellow Doug. I can practically see his breath freezing in the air...well done.

GregB

From StuartL - A Giant Sized Post - 107 points

Hello all,

Sadly I wasn't able to get anything posted last week due to a number of reasons. Work has been getting busier as some staff are off work with Covid or are isolating due to being in close proximity. I've also hit the mid-challenge doldrums where other activities are calling to me and picking up a brush is getting harder to do. Anyway, I managed to get a couple of things finished off, so expect a few posts from me today. 

I thought I would kick things off with a giant sized post of Reaper Bones minis. All of these are from the various Reaper Kickstarters over the past few years. As anyone who has bought any of the Bones line will know, the smaller models tend to be quite bendy, but the bigger models are very sturdy and very cheap for what you get. I have a load of regular heroes and monsters for my D&D games, but I wanted to focus on getting some of the larger models ready for the table-top and so present here a bunch of bigger, chunkier models.

Starting off with the smallest figure I painted, this Beastman stands a meagre 40mm in height. Though not really visible due to his attacking pose, there are a bunch of skull emblems on his belt.

This next group of minis, range in height from 50-60mm and include 2 Ogres, a Rat-ogre, a Minotaur, a Formorian Giant and an Ettin. Several of them are also carrying skulls on their belts or on a necklace.

Next up we have two Hill Giants, each standing over 60mm tall and sporting tree trunks with which to wallop adventurers who stray within reach.

And finally, standing at a whopping 100mm tall, a Cyclops. His weapon is made from the base of a pillar chained to the end of a massive branch from a tree, and he is wearing a belt made from fleeces and a necklace of skulls and assorted bones. It's these details that really help define the scale of the figure.

And just to give you an idea of the size of these minis, we have Jarl Hvat-skael (a 28mm gripping beast mini) posing in front of the group. As you can no doubt tell, all of the minis were painted in the same fashion. I was tempted to try doing different skin tones, but figured that it would be easier to do them all the same and get them done faster.

So, by my rough calculations I have:

1x40mm @7 points = 7 Points.

8x54mm @10 points = 80 Points.

1xMonster @20 points = 20 Points. 

For a grand total of 107 Points. 

There are a total of 21 Skulls on these minis, which can be added to my Skullz Duel total as well.

Skullz Total: 78

See you in the next post! 

Great to see you back again Stuart.  I think we all have a love/hate relationship with Reaper Bones minis, but I agree that size definitely matters in this case.  I love this collection of massive brutes, the Jarl better turn around before he becomes a tinned snack.  I did not count the Skullz as it is well below my pay grade.  I will leave final tally to the Skullometer and the Skullz-Boffin.

From Dallas: It's All Barks's Fault (15 points)

So here we have a Reaper Hill Giant. How is it Barks's fault?

A couple weeks ago, Mr. B posted an amazing Ringwraith on a Fellbeast, from Games Workshop's Lord of the Rings range. Wow, I thought, what an amazing looking model! I also have a sizeable collection of LotR models, but no Fellbeast... and Barks's post made me think I really need one. So off I went to look at picking one up.

At the same time, Conscript Frederick of our gaming group has been painting LotR models like a madman, and this made me think that maybe higher-order escalation might be appropriate. Since a Fellbeast by itself is $75 from GW, but the Battle of Pelennor Fields box set (which includes a Fellbeast as well as over 80 other models and a new rulebook) is "only" $190, the choice is clear - especially as the box can be found online for about a 15% discount...

So off I scuttled to eBay and found a Canadian vendor selling the BoPF box, and ordered it. Since the box includes 20 plastic Army of the Dead models and I'd never painted anything from that faction, I hit up the Web again to look at paint recipes for those models. "Biel-Tan Green" wash seemed like a good option and I don't have any in my paint stash, so I stopped at the local shop to pick some up. One thing led to another and I ended up browsing the racks of Reaper Minis... and was stopped cold by this very cool Bobby Jackson sculpt of a Hill Giant. Lacking any really big giants in my fantasy collection, I couldn't resist this one, and picked it up along with the BTG wash.

The Hill Giant was an easy afternoon project. It's made of some strange resin, but it's actually grey in colour rather than regular Reaper Bones white, and seems a bit sturdier and less bendy, which is an excellent thing indeed. The funny business started when I primed him with flat black spray - the finish on the model ended up high-gloss. Another coat made no difference, and even a dusting with a different flat brown spray ended up very glossy. So before I put the brushes to him I sprayed him with Krylon Matt Finish and that dulled him down a bit.

The Hill Giant is obviously mostly flesh... so I worked this up from the dark brown spray using Mournfang Brown, Skrag Brown, Cadian Flesh, and finally Kislev Flesh. The tree trunk is Mournfang and Steel Legion Drab washed with watered-down GW Brown Ink. Normally I'd painted the fur in a brown tone but considering how much brown there was on the model already, I opted for a grey fur.

This model was great fun to paint (once I got past the priming) and he'll fit in well with the rest of my fantasy stuff. Bobby Jackson did a great job with the sculpt (his facial expression is awesome and reminds me a lot of the old Citadel style) and at $12.49 the price can't be beat.   

So that's 15 points for this VERY large 28mm Giant... obviously I've fallen out of the top 20 in the league table but hopefully that keeps me in the top 25 for a bit anyway. Now back to the Reaver Titan I've been tasked by the Snowlord to paint!

Stay safe all!

From EvanH - They Might Be Giants (50 points)

Greetings, Challengers and Challenge Fans!

Well, the best-laid plans and all that... doesn't look like I'll make my target this year, what with real life having the poor taste to intrude upon valuable painting time. 

Here's a couple of placeholder figures, a Stone Giant and Hill Giant, a couple of old faves who've been with us since the halcyon days of the 1st Edition AD&D Monster Manual. 

Let's look at Ol' Stoney first. 

Stone Giants are curiously gaunt in appearance, and as hard as the peaks they call home. He's a Reaper Bones figure and stands 70mm from head to toe. I rather like this one; he's got a wealth of personal equipment ranging from assorted pouches and satchels to a hammer and some pitons for serious mountaineering.

Here's a pic for scale;

Hey Kids! It's our old friend from Challenge IX, Grumpy Viking Santa!

I've given him a greenstone club because I wanted to avoid making the whole thing too grey in tone, what with the basing and the metal and all.

The anatomy of the figure was fun to pick out and highlight, with the musculature really calling out for some extra definition. Basecoat for the skintones was a mix of Vallejo Game Colour Sombre Grey and Beasty Brown, highlighted up with additional Cold Grey. A wash of Army Painter Strong Tone was added to finish it off.

The base is a Warbases 60mm MDF Round, strewn with marble chips. Gaps were filled with Vallejo White Pumice Paste, and the whole thing was undercoated black before being lightened up with successive greys.

I do like this figure. I know I've said it before, but Reaper Bones are a great way to get big impressive monsters on the gaming table for a very reasonable price (and no, I'm not on the payroll!).

Next up is his chunkier mate, a Reaper Bones Hill Giant; about the same height, but clearly does more lifting. And eating. And boozing.

Definitely has an unwashed look about him.

All his metalwork has been given a rusty look, since I figure that Hill Giants don't really look after their kit that well.

This fellow was based with Milliput built up around his moulded base, given the old GWSWGG treatment and a few tufts.

Doesn't that just scream 'halitosis'?

Points-wise, I'll ask the minion of the day to consider 15 points each, since really, there's no 'might be' about it - They're Definitely Giants!

Only a few more days to get some more points on the board; will I make it?

Stay tuned...

Ev
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By Paul: 
Classic figs Ev, you've done em proud.  I particularly like the base work you've done on them.
Given their size, I'm going to score them as 40mm Vehicles for a total of 50 points.
Now get back to painting - you've got a few days left!

From EvanH: A Giant Figure For One Man (50 Points)

Greetings Challengers and Challenge Fans, my third fourth entry (third completed, fourth submitted) for Challenge X comes lumbering over the battlefields of the Old World in the form of this Citadel Giant.

This is my belated Curtgeld submission for Challenge X (don't worry, I cleared it with His Big Blueness earlier in the week), and is intended as a gift for my good mate Millsy.

Millsy has been run ragged fighting the fires which have been encircling Sydney since September last year, and has consequently missed out on his normal form of holiday relaxation, i.e., painting like a maniac.

Well, I couldn't have him miss out completely, and as it was his birthday a few weeks back, I dug out this old Giant from the Garage of Shame to add to his Orcs & Goblins army, or even use as a Mercenary Giant for his Dogs of War. Portability is the key!

I've left the base free of flock or tufts, so that Millsy can customise it to match the rest of the army. I'm quite pleased with how he's turned out, and I hope Millsy likes him too!

So 25 points as a Curtgeld submission, and as he's 110mm tall, I suppose that qualifies as the equivalent of two 54mm figures, which is 20 points, near enough. So if the Minions allow, he's worth 45 points!

More on the way, but for the moment, I've got a balloon to catch!

Stay tuned...!

Ev

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Evan - this is really cool to see! It brings back so many memories of Warhammer Fantasy Battle - at least, it does for me, and hopefully for the other classic Warhammer Fantasy fans who are participating in The Challenge. In my case, the memories are not "oh, I painted that figure too", but instead are more "oh, wow, that is the kind of figure I hope I can paint one day when I figure this stuff out."  It is so neat to see a finished one!

And really, who wouldn't want to carry a big barrel of grog around, right?

I'm sure Millsy will love it. Great work. I'm adding five bonus points for the "holy smokes, one of those wish-I-could-paint-that-thing-one-day-things" having actually been painted and for the fact that it is quite large.

GregB

BrendonW - Three Giant Cyclops

3 x 28mm scale Giants from Puppet Wars, Resin.

Hello
I was hoping to get more than this completed but my city came under attack from a Category 2 Cyclone. Winds recorded around 130km/h. It was a wild few hours that resulted in a big clean up afterwards. The wind waged war against trees and lots of trees lost the battle.

Anyway here are three Giants for my Kings of War Goblin army. Two required arms glued on and then filling. I am not a fan of miniatures that require gap filling and that has delayed them a long time. However I really liked the character these three Cyclopian dudes have.

Painting large areas of skin tone is challenging after mainly painting 28mm infantry. I went with three slightly different tones. I gloss varnished the eyes and mouth areas. In retrospect I could have made an attempt at painting the eyes looking down but in the position they are in the viewer cops a good look over. These are not as big as that GW plastic Giant and the rock thrower (who I considered could be used as an alternative war machine) stands around 90mm tall including the rock and the other two are around 75mm tall. They are based on 50mm squares. I seldom feel any need for blood on my miniatures but as the sculpt of the headless female victim has a gruesome stump of a former neck I reached for the GW blood. I have been short on time recently so these photos had to be rushed. In army list terms these are 190 points each and they are described as having small brains. The look of these brutes seems to really fit the description.

The Challenge has been awesome thanks to Michael Awdry as my Saturday Minion and of course the Curt as well for keeping us all challenged. Well done all of you who painted something and thank you to those who may not have painted but cheered us on through comments.

Cheers from Brendon.

From Byron:

Well, I have painted in some strange places and times while traveling for work, but I think you would have me (and every other painter on here) beat if you would have hauled out the brushed during the cyclone! Now that would have been a story to tell the kids!  "Back in my day, not even a cyclone could stop us from doing our hobbies, not like you young whipper snappers!"

In all seriousness though, glad you are ok, and these look really good.  Especially given that they were done in a rush, and given the large areas of flesh tone.  I always struggle with painting flesh and especially large areas of it, but I think you did extremely well with these.  The eyes also look good, you may be right on the fact that looking down may have been better, but I won't fault you for that as the eyes themselves look great!  I also really like the models themselves, they have a ton of character.

As for points, I am going to score them as a 28mm vehicle each and grant 15 points per as that seems to be the going rate for this size model, but will add a bonus 5 for the bigger one, just so you don't feel cheated (and since you were a fellow Saturday challenger!).

Awesome work Brendon.