From BenF: Kings of Kings and Kinsmen - 15mm Persian Guard and Commanders (Glorantha) (115 Points)

For this week's entry, I've managed to finish off the elite forces of my Later Achaemenid Persians. I do love an underdog. While armies of Napoleon's Imperial Guard, British Riflemen, English longbowmen, or Early Imperial Romans do hold a certain allure, I tend to be drawn to the side which might have been victorious if only a decision, a deployment, or just dumb luck been different. To that end, alongside the Persians, I'll also be working on early Napoleonic Prussians and Russians, and also some Remnant Imperial Stormtroopers this challenge. 

While the Achaemenid Persians are a much maligned force, a careful reading of the Greek sources show that some Persian troops and leaders, often fought bravely, if a little recklessly. Some might even say heroically. Xenophon tells of how in 401BC, Kūruš, better known as Cyrus the Younger, pretender to the Persian throne, led his kinsmen cavalry in a heroically doomed charge against his brother the King of Kings, Artarxerxes II at the battle of Cunaxa, being cut down at the moment of victory. 67 years later, on the Granicus River, Spithrodáta, the Satrap (military governor) of Lydia and Ionia, and his brother Raucaka, led another doomed, but ferociously reckless charge of Persian cavalry against the Companions of the Boy King Alexander of Macedon. I hope you will forgive me channeling my inner Ancient History Teacher, and handing over to Diodorus Siculus:

The Alexander Mosaic from the House of the Faun, Pompeii

[17.20.1] But the Persians resisted bravely and matched with their spirit the valour of the Macedonians, as fortune had brought together in that place the finest fighters to dispute the victory. [17.20.2] The satrap of Ionia, Spithrobates, a Persian by birth, son in law to the Great King Darius, and a man of superior courage, hurled himself at the Macedonian lines with a large body of cavalry, and with a guard of forty companions, all of the Royal Kinsmen and of outstanding valour, pressed hard on the opposite line and in a fierce attack slew some of his opponents and grievously wounded others. [17.20.3] As the force of this attack seemed critical, Alexander turned his horse towards the satrap and rode at him. To the Persian, it seemed as if this opportunity for single combat was god-given. He hoped that by his bravery Asia might be rid of its terrible menace, and the renowned daring of Alexander halted by his own hand, and the glory of the Persians saved from disgrace. He hurled his javelin first at Alexander with such a mighty throw that he pierced Alexander's shield and drove through his breastplate. [17.20.4] The king shook off the weapon as it dangled from his arm, then kicked in his spurs and, using the momentum of his charging horse, drove his lance squarely into the satrap's chest [17.20.5]...The point, however, snapped off against the breastplate and the broken shaft recoiled, and the Persian drew his sword and drove at Alexander, but the king recovered his grip on the lance in time to thrust at the man's face and drive the blow home [17.20.6] The Persian, fell, but then his brother, the noble Rhosaces, galloping up drove his sword down on Alexander's head with such a blow that it split his helmet and inflicted a scalp wound [17.20.7] As Rhosaces aimed another blow at the break, Cleitus the Black dashed up on his horse and cut off the Persian's arm.

Even Darius III Codomannus, whose moment of panicked flight at the battle of Issus was immortalised in the famous Alexander Mosaic, fought bravely and with distinction in the campaigns of the warrior king Artarxerxes III.

In case you can't tell, I'm a bit of a fan of Achaemenid Persians. The bizzare and ornately decorated pyjama clothing, the wide variety of troop types, and the 'foreignness' of this arm provides a painting, as well as a tabletop challenge, which only adds to the allure. 

These are all 15mm Forged in Battle figures, and they're rather spiffing. 

First off, the Hûvakâ, or the Royal Kinsmen Cavalry. Armoured, and led by a satrap, these are slightly converted figures, with a few headswaps and some moving of the spears to a more suitable charging pose. I went all out with this lot when it comes to the gold bronze armour, ornately decorated tunics, and other bling. I'm pretty satisfied with how they came out, and can happily report that yesterday they led a charge against my mate Steve's Companion cavalry in a game of Basic Impetus 2 - a game winning charge as well. So much for the curse of freshly painted figures. 

Hûvakâ guard advance under the Achaemenid Royal banner, led by a prince of the blood.

Next, a base of Bactrian cavalry. These capable light cavalrymen from central Asia fought with bow, sword, and javelin. They served with the Achaemenids, and then under Alexander and his successors.

Next, its the strangest of Persian innovations - the terrifying, if largely ineffective, scythed chariot. I used foil from the top of a wine bottle to make some reins for the driver. Despite his heavy armour, the strategy was for him to charge at the enemy line, then jump off before the whole thing contacted, hopefully causing a lot of destruction. I don't care to think about the survival rate of the drivers. I've scored this wierd beast as a 15mm vehicle and a 15mm foot figure for the crewman - I think I spent more time on the horse saddlecloth decorations for the chariot than I did on the Bactrians! I hope this is ok. 

Finally for this week's entry, its the commanders themselves. The chap in the chariot is Darius III Codomannus, the unfortunate King of Kings who had taken the throne and was attempting to win a civil war when the brilliant maniac Alexander III of Macedon invaded, intent on proving himself better than his heroic ancestor Achilles and conquering the whole of Asia. For the other bases, the chap with the standard bearer is a Satrap - or perhaps Kūruš the usurper. As with the Hûvakâ, I again went to town with the clothing decorations, reflecting the wealth and power of these leaders of one of the worlds first great empires. For the other general, I did a headswap to give him the plumed helmet, and he will act as a cavalry leader - perhaps Spithrodata or Raucaka, though hopefully more fortunate in battle. 

Darius in his Royal Chariot. The colours are from the Alexander Mosaic

The Satrap goes to battle under the banner of his house

Cavalry commander with a Hûvakâ guard escort

That's it for this week. I'm currently working my way through the last options of the Persian army - Thracians, and some Persian foot - slingers and the enigmatic Takabara and Kardakes, and perhaps even the Apple Bearer foot guards. 

Summary of Points for this entry

• 17 x 15mm mounted @ 4 points = 68 points
• 2 x 15mm vehicles @ 8 points = 16 points
• 3 x 15mm foot figures @ 2 points = 6 points
• Glorantha (Outer Ring) bonus = 20 points
• Millsy: +5 points for details

Total = 115 points

From Millsy:

Glorious work Ben! These are, to use your own words, rather spiffing! At first glance I didn't notice the scale and thought I was looking at 28mm stuff. I was impressed even then, which makes your work so much more impressive at 15mm. You've really gone to town on the range of colours and details which just adds to the overall WOW factor of these.

With the quadrant bonus and the extra points I'm awarding for the lovely detail work that's 115 points added to your tally. Nice work mate. Spiffing!

From HowardT: Later Achaemenid Persian 1/72 20mm (188 points)

Slower Progress through January.  Working with 1/72 plastic figures for this half of the Achaemenid army.  This submission includes Takabara, skirmish bow/sling,  Cavalry, Light Cavalry and Horde. Scale 20 mm. 

All HAT plastic figures.

Points breakdown:

Takabara,  four stands of 3 figures each.        Points = 4 x 12 = 48.

Skirmishers, four stands  of 2 figures each.    Points = 4 x  8 = 32.

Horde, one stand of 7 figures.                         Points = 4 x  7 = 28.

Light Cavalry,  two stands of 2 figures each.   Points = 8 x 4 = 32.

Cavalry, two stands of 3 figures each.            Points = 8 x 6 = 48.

Total of points is  (48+32+28+32+48) = 188 points.

 

Based for DBA, 13 Stands of Achaemenid Persians of Darius III, 330BC ish.

Right side profile.

Front profile.

 

These HäT models hold up well. I like the bright colours and the conservative basing.

Barks

May I implore the tardy Thursdayites- Howard, Dallas, Dave- to submit your draft posts before Saskatchatchatchewan Thursday, or else there's a risk it won't go up for a week.

From BenF: First Submission 0 Horsemen of the Steppe - 15mm Scyths (Klendathu) [48 points]

Here's my very belated first entry to the AHPC XII. It's great to be back for my 5th year, and this year I'm hoping to get more done than my abysmal effort for AHPC XI - one entry! That's what moving schools and having a 2 year old will do I suppose. I've actually managed to get a fair bit of painting done since the beginning of the challenge, but due to some renovations, my little Evelyn turning 3, (and a resin 3D Printer I got for Christmas) I've not had a chance to get some photos until now. 

This entry is another addition to my 15mm Late Achaemenid Persian army for Impetus 2. This is a very long running project which I began back in 2018. While the Achaemenids are a fascinating force the ornate decorations and clothing on some of the contingents are definitely a challenge for the painting mojo. There is something to be said for Imperial Romans with their plain, easy-to-paint, reds, whites, and steel. I teach a course on Alexander, and next year will incorporate some historical gaming with Basic Impetus 2 to help the kids come to grips with the  battles of Gaugamela, Issus, and The Granicus. I've already got a Macedonian force, and with the last few Persians I'm working, on, I'll finally have some Persian opponents. 

I've used a fair bit of gaming in my Extension History classes before, and last year even finally managed to get a school gaming club up and running. I've heard lots over the past few years lamenting the greying of the hobby, but seeing the enthusiasm of the 9th and 10th grade boys and girls, I think the future ain't all doom and gloom. Speaking of getting younger people into the hobby, Santa got Evie a model Spitfire for Christmas, and she loved sitting at Dad's painting table and painting her aeroplane all the colours of the rainbow. 

So, this entry is a base of Scythian cavalry, excellent little 15mm sculpts from Forged in Battle. These are armoured medium cavalry from the Patient Wolves clan, armed with lance, bow, and sword, and charging into battle under a rather grisly war trophy. Listening to Christian Cameron's superb 'Tyrant' Series while painting has given me a fascination for the horse nomads who travelled the sea of grass, alternately terrorising and trading with the settled societies to the south. It's also where I've taken the clan names from. Barry Cunliffe's exceptional book gives a really good insight into the sophisticated society. They were extremely capable warriors as well, wiping out a force of up to 30,000 Macedonian troops under Alexander's lieutenant Zopyrion in 331BC while the boy king was off conquering the Persian empire. 

Its the Patient Wolves role in destroying Zopyrion's invasion of the Bosphorus that nets me the Klendathu bonus. The colourful patterns on their clothing is all based on information gleaned from Ancient Warfare, as well as fabrics and other burial evidence. I painted the horse using contrast paints over a white undercoat. While I wasn't at first entirely convinced, mixing a few paints has given me some recipes that i'm happy with, making my lest favourite task of painting horses much less painful.

I've got some heavy Scythian cavalry, as well as a few more bases of Light cavalry in the painting queue and this will fill out the Scythian contingent - maybe even expand out into it's own Impetus army.

Next up, some more Persian contingents, Thracian and Illyrian hillmen, though I may try to grab the Glorantha bonus with some heroic Kinsmen cavalry and commanders.

Points Breakdown

7 x 15mm mounted @ 4pts  =  28pts

Klendathu bonus (failed invasion) = 20pts

From DaveD

As this is your first submission to make the cut I will process this one today. Great to see the encouragement of the younger generation - and on a Spitfire too - well done. I do love the horseflesh you have completed - its worth the wait. So welcome to the right side of the cut Millsy will be pleased - that's you back on the Saturday crew!

With that my shift is done as I have an early start tomorrow - I  will leave you to you to tender mercies of Millsy - oh yes indeed very tender .. he's not known as the G*** for nothing ..

From BenF: Alexander's Funeral Games - 15mm Ancient Successors (164 pts)

Well, it seems like the world is going rather crazy at the moment. From toilet paper hoarding to panic buying of pasta, to the usual conspiracy theory tropes, the insanity of the online world seems to have outdone itself on this one. Glad to see that the challenge is pottering along as calmly as ever, an island of sanity. I hope that everyone and their loved ones are staying safe.

For this entry, it's about as close as I get to a painting bomb - a bunch of 15mm ancients for Sword and Spear and Impetus. I love the opportunity to base them us as little dioramas offered by the large bases. I've got a Macedonian force which I had previously completed, with a few commanders appearing in the last challenge. To face off against Alexandros III Megalos I've been chipping away at a late Achaemenid Persian force. The bright colours and intricate details and patterns of their costume look great, but are not the easiest to paint up. I've also been reading about the successors, particularly the spectacular career of Antigonus One-Eyed - which would make a great movie. By tweaking my Macedonian army, and adding some odds and sods, I should be able to field an Antigonid army for S&S and Impetus.

First off, Persian cavalry. This lot are Iranians, and can serve equally with the Achaemenid army of the King of Kings, Darius III, or with the successor forces of Antigonus, or even with the Imperial army of Alexander himself. They're lovely Forged in Battle figures, and I did some minor alterations, changing poses and moving the spears around. These three bases did take a long time to finish, and the patterns nearly did for me. However, as high status troops I did spend extra time on them. I've got a base of armoured Persian cavalry, and the rest of the force will be Scythians and Bactrians.

Next, it's the superweapon of the successor age - a pair of war elephants. I also went a little crazy on these two, spending a fair bit of time painting up their blankets with designs of Zeus and the Star of Macedon, along with patterning. Very happy with the result, and as most games require few elephants, I think the time invested paid off. I've also included a few peltasts to provide support for the nellies.

Next, a base of Prodromoi, Alexander's Paeonian light lancers. The crazy colours of armies from this period seem sometimes very unusual to men, someone who usually paints 20th century, Romans and Dark Ages figures. The fetching pink/blue/yellow combo is historical, and based on a range of evidence including tombstones. It does pop though, doesn't it. Between the pink cloaks and the leopard skin saddles, this is one bunch of ancient dandies.

Finally, its a force ubiquitous to the Hellenistic period, the Peltasts. Armed with javelins, but equipped to hold their own in hand to hand, the Peltasts were often deployed in support of or on opposition to phalanxes. Xenophon recounts a case where peltasts annihilated a phalanx of Spartans. Despite their apparent commonness in Hellenistic armies, Sword and Spear doesn't include any stats for them, so we've home ruled some. Also, I couldn't find any shield decals to fit this lot, so ended up painting my own designs on. They're not perfect, but i'm happy with them.

I do have some more successor troops and loads of Achaemenids, but that is for another Challenge.

For this lot, the total should be :

24 horse = 96 points
26 foot = 52
2 elephant? (maybe 20mm mounted) = 16

For a grand total of......164 points!!!

MilesR: wow - these are really nicely done - love the Ellies.  I'm scoring this as all 15mm but with 15 bonus points to account for the size of the ellies and the stunning shield and banner paints - 179 paints for this superb Persian Host.  Now keep them in quarantine for 14 days, if you please.